Lilacs and Cyanide
by Manixa
Summary: While on a mission, Sasori and Deidara find Akatsuki a new spy and medic for Akatsuki.
1. Part Un

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Un

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Author's Note: This is a role play between one of my best friend's and I. If you do read this, understand that it is formatted exactly how are role play is, and not like regular stories I write. Also, you may notice that both American and British English were used in this. [It may be apparent in later chapters more than it is now. I didn't feel like changing it. I would also like my loyal readers to know that I haven't forgotten about 'For Eternity'!

Disclaimer: Naruto Characters (c) Kishimoto

Yokaze no Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

Kurosawa Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

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Yuka stood behind a dark cedar counter, drying a glass with a white rag. Tonight she was posing as the barmaid for the tavern for a woman who wanted to know who her husband was cheating on her with. The target had yet to show, so she nonchalantly observed a couple men sitting at a nearby table because of their 'odd' behavior.

'Whoaaa...Senpai! I think -hic- I'm getting drunk!' an obnoxiously childlike man said. Yuka couldn't see his face, as it was covered by a mask.

'You _can't_ be getting drunk, Tobi. That's Kool-Aid, un.'

One other figure sat farther from the two on the table. He was shorter, had short red hair; hell, he looked like he was just a kid hidden underneath that large cloak. He was, however, much older than at least one of the other two at that table. Akasuna no Sasori; he had discarded Hiruko for the night and was now sitting there, watching the other two men (although it seemed like there were only two people on the table).  
He couldn't help but roll his eyes at the masked man's comment. "Why can't that idiot stay with Zetsu, brat?" He asked in a dull tone, crossing his arms.

Miya silently made her way into a tavern; she had been traveling for a few hours now and obviously needed to stay somewhere. She had taken care of that already, but staying at that inn and falling asleep so early didn't sound all that pleasant. Besides, a few drinks couldn't hurt... Much. Her hair was tied up tonight, but other than that she looked plain and not interesting at all, which she found good because she did not want to attract any unwanted attention.  
She walked over to the counter, only glancing away to look at a group of men talking about Kool-Aid. _Weird..._ She thought, frowning, but that expression vanished as she looked over at the barmaid with a smile.  
"Hello..." Miya started rather slowly, as if afraid her voice would fail (she was usually quiet lately). "Do you have any sake...?" She asked.

Yuka pulled a long stand of hair behind her ear and smiled as she set the rag and glass down. 'Of course.' she replied in a Southern drawl although the accent is unnatural to her, it fits her barmaid guise. She pours a small cup of sake in Miya's glass and sets the bottle on the counter beside it. 'Enjoy.'

'Oh, I don't know, Danna,' Deidara said irritably. 'Zetsu had some kind of plans tonight with, um, the other Zetsu, un.'

Tobi giggled. 'Zetsu has line dancing class tonight.' The thought of Zetsu dancing amused him profusely, and his laugh became very loud and annoying, disturbing the other customers.

Yuka tried to get Tobi's attention, but he didn't hear her and since she was too lazy to walk over, she through a knife at him, which missed him by 3 cm and drove into the wall. When he turned wide eyed [although his expression couldn't be seen she smiled genuinely. 'If you would be so kind as to be quiet, I would appreciate it. If not, I'll have to forcefully show you out.'

"Thank you." Miya said with a smile, her attention then drawn to the glass as she slowly started drinking. She wasn't exactly tired, just kind of thoughtful; it had only been a week since she had set off on a journey. Maybe Tsunade-sama had said yes because she would see it as something like a mission: Miya was searching for knowledge in the medical area and, who knows, maybe she would discover things that could be useful for the village! She almost laughed aloud at that thought. She didn't even know if she was going back anymore.

Sasori sighed irritably; Zetsu should know better than that. The redhead already had to take care of the blonde brat; he didn't need another one to add to his list. He was an S-Ranked criminal, not a _babysitter_!  
He didn't say anything when Deidara was done speaking, but sighed once again, narrowing his eyes at the masked man when he started laughing louder and louder. For a moment, the thought of poisoning him and leave him to die in an abandoned alley crossed his mind, but he was sure Leader would kill _him_ afterwards and, well, Sasori was aiming for eternity. He was about to snap at Tobi when a knife flew by and hit the wall, narrowly missing its target. He turned around in his seat to look at who had thrown the object, a surprised expression evident in his face for a few seconds.

Miya nearly dropped her glass when she heard the metal of the knife hitting the wall. Mostly out of instinct, she set the glass down, and her hand was about to reach to the needles she carried at all times when she heard the barmaid speak to those men at the table she had walked past only moments ago. It took her a minute or two to process the thought of what had just occurred was not actually an attack, but when she did realise that fully, the shocked look was replaced by a calm one and she drank some more of her sake. "That was a good one." She told Yuka, smiling slightly.

Yuka grinned, about to say humbly that it comes with the job, but she remembered she was undercover. "Yeah," she said quickly--hopefully not too quickly. "It's how I keep my kids in line. Rowdy, and obnoxious, the lot of them." She noticed her target walk in with another woman. After a quick glance she decided she could describe the bimbo, so she went back drying glasses.

Tobi stared at Sasori. "Are you okay, Sasori-san? That lady almost killed you! And she says _you're_ being loud?"

"She was talking about you, idiot! ..Un" Deidara said, gripping the neck of his beer bottle and chugging it.

Miya blinked a couple of times at Yuka's answer, but eventually smiled once again. "You look a bit young to have kids but, then again, I guess I'm not really one to talk." She laughed at that last part and directed her attention to the other people present in that room.  
"Uhm... I know this is an odd question, but do you know if there's any doctor or someone with at least some knowledge of medicine around here?" She asked, pulling a strand of hair behind her ear. Oddly enough, she wasn't wearing her forehead protector now. She had left it at the small inn she was staying at, along with whatever few belongings she had brought along.

"..." Sasori inwardly twitched at the masked man's idiocy. Could he be anymore dense than this!? Hell, not even Deidara had ever been this hard to put up with! And if Sasori had more than once thought of poison him, rip out his internal organs and make him into a puppet... For Tobi it would all be much worse, much more painful and in the end, he'd probably _burn_ the damned thing just so it would never bother him again.  
"Tobi, do you even know what we're doing here?" He asked bluntly after some time, just to make sure he wasn't as useless as he looked like.

"Medicine? This is an awfully small village...there's only a 'medicine man' who knows the basics of medicine...like treating colds and such. There's a larger place a little north of here that has a medical school...mostly non-shinobi people attend there...then there is Tsunade from Konaha." Yuka couldn't think of any other medicinal places or people then began to wonder if non-shinobi knew about Tsunade. Well, she was a Sannin, after all, so it's possible...

Tobi stared at Sasori as he thought deeply. "Deidara-senpai is aiming on getting smashed, so I guess to drink alcohol." He turned and smiled at Deidara, who scowled at him.

"Oh, um... Thank you." Miya said simply. Since she grew up in Konaha, she didn't know if people who weren't shinobi knew Tsunade. However, if Yuka, just like many people she had seen on missions had heard of her, then it was more than possible. Besides, it's not like shinobi lived in a separate world from everyone else. "I'll make sure to look for that place tomorrow or the day after. As for Tsunade-sama... I think she'd be happy to know her name is recognized even in smaller villages like this one."

Sasori rolled his eyes at Tobi's answer. He couldn't help but wonder how Zetsu hadn't eaten him yet. No, actually he wondered how the kid was an S-ranked criminal; nothing came to him except for the fact that he was exceptionally good at making everyone lose their temper.  
The redhead sighed once again. "..." He was going to speak, but realised that he had nothing to say. However, he assumed there ought to be some voice of reason acting before he had to drag his co-workers out by force. "Tobi, either you stop drinking or I'll tell Zetsu and leader-sama what a bad boy you were. The same goes to you, brat... Except in your case, I'll make sure to chop off your hands and burn them before Kakuzu can sew them back on."  
Maybe a bit too harsh, yes, but Sasori was like that and besides, each and everyone was present in this place - including himself - was starting to irk the puppet master and his patience was wearing off.  
He stood up and walked over to the counter, a few feet away from Miya; it seems she hadn't sensed their chakra the same way he at least had sensed hers. Pathetic, really, but he wasn't about to put up a fight. "If those two ask for anything else, be it the strongest drink you've got or a simple glass of water... Do not give it to them." He told Yuka.

Yuka nodded, glancing at the clock on the wall. "I'll pass that along to the barmen who is taking my place. I'm getting off in five." Yuka turned to Miya. "I'm sure she would." It took her a moment, then she realized she said that coldly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that to be rude. My village--where I grew up--didn't think very kindly of her."

Deidara turned away from Tobi and saw Sasori talking to the barmaid. "What are you doing, Danna, hitting on the barmaid?" His eyes widened. "Don't leave me with this idiot!"

"It's... It's alright." Sure, to Miya it was a bit odd to hear someone speaking of Tsunade that way, but not everyone had to like her or worship her and she tried to take that in consideration as well. Besides, she wasn't that fond of her apprentice... Haruno Sakura, was it? She sounded way too irritating, at least most of the times she'd seen her.  
She heard the blonde man back at the table speaking. _Danna?_ She frowned at the title.

Sasori nodded at Yuka and looked over momentarily at the shorter, brown-haired lady. He obviously understood what she was thinking of. "We're not married!" He snapped, inwardly twitching at the thought. He looked back at the table, casting Deidara a look that basically told him to 'shut up or else...!', then looked back at Yuka. "Don't mind those two. Brats." It was ironic how he was saying that, yet a lot of people who saw him outside Hiruko would instantly assume he's the youngest of the three.

"Not a problem, Sir." Yuka replied, then turned to an older man who came behind the counter. "Ah, Bobu! You've come to take my place."

The man looked at Yuka, confused. "Who are you? Where's Arisu?"

"Haha, You're so funny..." Yuka said, laughing dryly. "Always the jokester, Bob..." She knew she played that off poorly and was itching to get out of the bar. She nodded a goodbye to those around her and walked out of the bar, then hopping onto a tree limb.

Deidara sat in his chair, sulking, not only because of Tobi's insolence, but because his Danna was being 'mean' again. He felt something jabbing into his hair and scalp, and with a swift jerk of his hand, pulled out two straws. "Tobi, what's this?"

Tobi whined. "Ah, senpai! Now you're not an alien anymore."

"Arisu?" Both Miya and Sasori asked when Yuka left.  
The redhead, however curious about this and knowing that something was probably off - this _was_ a little village and people most likely knew each other fairly well -, didn't seem as interested. He walked back to his table and glared at Tobi, only to smack him afterwards. "Grow up." He growled. "Same to you, brat! You should know better than to let him get away with his jokes."

Miya, on the other hand, stood still, thinking, but snapped out of it when she heard a coin falling on the floor. "Oh, um..." She eventually found her wallet and paid for the sake. "I almost forgot that." She smiled and was about to leave when she turned back to the man. "Excuse me, but you didn't seem to recognize the other barmaid... Why?" She asked, then added; "If you don't mind me asking." as an afterthought. Although it wasn't any of her business, she couldn't help but wonder if there was more to this village than the friendly people who lived in it.

"Really, Danna, it's not _my_ fault!" He looked at the clock irritably. "Tobi, you should go ahead and go to the hotel room. It's hours past your bedtime."

"Senpai, I can't go without you! I'll get lost!"

"What's so bad about that?" Deidara replied. "I don't think the person we're waiting for is showing up."

"We were waiting on someone?" Tobi asked incredulously. Deidara didn't answer because he didn't even know the reason they were there anymore.

Bobu replied simply. "I don't know who the hell she was. Never seen her before...I figured Arisu would have told me if she was getting someone to replace her...guess not." Bobu was very puzzled about this, but could not come up with a reason why Arisu wasn't there.


	2. Part Deux

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Deux

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Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimoto

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Yuka walked down the street to a small house and relayed her findings to her employer. "Subject was with bleach-blonde. bimbo type. Approximately 150 cm in height--" Yuka didn't even have to finish her description, as the woman confirmed the 'bimbo' to be her sister. She collected her pay and headed towards the inn, the only one in the village, which was two buildings down from the tavern.

Sasori had to hold back the sudden urge to slap his forehead and then proceed to smash Tobi's face- or rather, smash his mask in. He glared straight at the hole in the orange mask, his brown eyes showing more than just irritation now."Tobi, go. Now." He stated in a demanding tone. He couldn't care less if Tobi got lost; it's not like he'd be easy to beat and besides, Leader had once said that shinobi of his level weren't that hard to find.  
_Does it take that f-cking long to reach a tavern? _ He thought impatiently.

"Ah, I understand." Miya nodded. She stood still for a moment, thinking; it did sound like something wasn't right about this, but maybe the girl had just gotten sick and had to find a last-minute replacement. "Well, um... I really should get going, I need to catch up on some reading." This part she said it more to herself than to Bobu. "Hopefully Arisu-san was just not feeling well. I'll be here for a couple of days so tomorrow I can look for her; I'm a medical-nin, so if she needs anything I'll try to help. Free of charge." She slowly moved away from the counter, turning towards the door. "Goodnight." She told the man and walked off.  
Although she didn't stop, she couldn't help but frown at the three men as she walked past them again. _Odd.. ._ Was her only description for them as she headed off back to the inn.

Deidara watched Tobi leave the tavern and turned back to Sasori. "Maybe he just _died _ or something. I don't know who in their right mind would want to make you wait, Danna."

As if on queue, a cloaked man approached them and casually took a seat by Sasori. "Sorry I'm late," He apologized; although his tone hinted that he didn't care. "You wanted information on the jinchuuriki from my village, yes? She lives here--" He pulled out a map and circled the location with a pencil. "It's not too far from here. My village would be pleased to be rid of that beast."

Deidara waved his finger at him. "We already know about the jinchuuriki. You were supposed to come up with something more valuable if you wanted us to spare you." He spoke in a soft, chastising tone, fully knowing that they'd end up killing him anyway--he knew too much.

"Right," the man said hastily, pulling out a scroll. "It contains forbidden justu."

Tobi sniffled softly as he walked into the inn. He hated being alone. Walking into the lobby, he hoped more than anything Deidara-senpai would be there soon to read him his bedtime story.

Yuka happened to be in to lobby at the same time, mentally calculating her earnings. She spotted Tobi at the other side of the lobby at frowned. She knew she had been careless, but had she been careless enough that others noticed? Probably. She couldn't take anymore chances tonight. She slipped away down the hallway to her room.

Sasori didn't need to comment on Deidara's statement, both because it _was_ true that he didn't like to be kept waiting and because the man was apparently alive. And late. And in it for revenge as soon as they were done with the discussion.

He narrowed his eyes at him and the map where he revealed the jinchuuriki's location; was this all he had? They already knew where she was. Or was he dumb enough to mess with the Akatsuki thinking he knew more about their own plans than themselves? Deidara spoke what had crossed his mind and he almost smirked at how casually he had said it. He looked down at the scroll the man was presenting. "We would... Rather take a look at it before _dismissing _ you."  
Of course by dismissing, he meant a lot more than what one would understand, but it would be hard to figure out, with his dull tone of voice.

Miya was too distracted to notice one of the men leave the tavern shortly after her until she finally entered the inn and noticed the masked on there in the lobby. She could have sworn she saw a shadow on the hallway as she came in, but her attention had been directed to the man almost instantly.  
Even though she couldn't see it, he seemed less cheerful than in the tavern. She walked up to the front desk; no one was there right now, so she assumed the person outside enjoying a smoke was just on a short break. She leaned onto the desk at the front and started tapping her fingers on the wood. "Those scrolls aren't going to read themselves..." She mumbled. She wasn't really impatient, but... She was just excited that she had gotten them and wanted to read them as soon as possible.

The man shifted in his seat. "Sure." He handed the scroll over.

Deidara opened the scroll and looked at his closely, then looked up to Sasori to see what he thought of it.

"I..I went through a lot of trouble to get it, see..." The man was at his wit's end, losing his composure. He began to fidget and paranoid as he couldn't read the expressions of the S-Ranked men sitting in front of him. "I have a wife...and kids."

Tobi rummaged through his pockets animatedly, looking for his key. He couldn't find it. But, he was a ninja, so he could just break in, couldn't he? Wow, this must mean he was like, smart or something! He trekked down the hallway, and stopped between two doors. Was his room 201 or 202? He went with the latter and used his 'skills' to unlock the door. Unfortunately, he made the wrong choice and found the room was already occupied by the woman who tried to kill Sasori-san earlier.

Yuka glared at him fiercely. She had been too careless. What did this guy know about her? Had he played stupid from the beginning or something? She couldn't take chances. She threw two kunai at him and chased him down the hallway into the lobby. [Although that wasn't the brightest idea to do either...

Moments before Yuka and Tobi ran back into the lobby, the clerk walked behind the desk from outside. "Can I help you?"

Sasori scanned the scroll carefully, taking in whatever information he could. It seemed real enough and Leader might be pleased if they took it - who knows, it could help their plans advance. He barely paid attention the man and the despair he knew he must be feeling. A family? Tch. He should have thought twice before speaking to them then. When he was done examining the item held out in front of him he turned his head to look at the man. However, he turned it slowly and a soft crack could be heard coming from his neck joint. His semi-closed eyes seemed to pierce straight into the man's soul. "We'll be taking this with us." He stated simply, closing the scroll and placing it somewhere inside his cloak. He gave Deidara a barely visible sign; he could kill him soon after they left the tavern, any way he wanted.

Miya noticed the masked man leaving towards the hallway, but decided not to pay much attention. She had seen a lot of unusual people by now, it's not like it was anything new. But there was just something... Odd about him. She directed her attention to the clerk as soon as he returned.  
"Oh uh, I left my room key here a while ago. Room 204, rented to Kurosawa Miya?..." She said, smiling slightly at the man. That expression, however, changed when she looked towards the hallway, only to notice the masked man running back to the lobby. "What the...?"

Deidara grinned happily, knowing he could show off his 'art'. He stood and clasped his hand on the man's shoulder. "Come with me, un." He nodded to Sasori slightly. "I'll meet you at the inn in a few." He led the man outside the tavern into the forest across the street. "Do you like art?"

The man wondered if this was some kind of trick question. He'd heard about that kind of stuff before...He gulped nervously, unable to make eye contact with Deidara even though the dark masked both their faces. "Yes."

"Then you'll love this." Deidara said calmly. Moments later, he muttered his incantation, _katsu_/,which blew the man into oblivion. He walked out of the forest, finding the sleepy village undisturbed. Of course it would have. He used a low-grade clay to dispose of him. It merely sounded like a firecracker in the village.

"Right" The clerk handed over the spare key then yelled at Tobi and Yuka, who had just ran into the room. "I won't have any of that behavior going on in the inn. Take it outside!" The two obliged and the clerk smiled apologetically to Miya. "I'm sorry. We usually don't have so many odd guests here."

Yuka pulled Tobi outside of the inn by his collar. She pinned him against the wall. "Why are you following me?"

"Tobi isn't! Tobi is a good boy!" Tobi insisted, trying to squirm away. He almost got away, too, but as soon as he tried to form hand signs for an escape jutsu, his arms paralyzed.

"Let me ask you again," Yuka said slowly. She wanted a straight answer and wanted it now. If his friends showed up, she'd have to retreat and not know what he knew about her. How good of a spy could she be if she herself was being spied on. "Why are you following me?"

"I'm not!"

"You came in my room."

"I thought it was mine!" Tobi pleaded, trying to move his arms. Why couldn't he? Maybe it was genjutsu? He couldn't break that...not even after all the times he'd been put under one by Itachi...

As soon as the left Sasori couldn't hold back the smirk; although Deidara's concept of "art" included a lot of noise and a messy outcome, he still got the job done. He just hoped he would push it; they weren't supposed to draw attention to themselves - although a short 'kid', an androgynous blond male and a taller, dark-haired male with an orange mask with a hole on it clad in black cloaks with red clouds already gathered enough attention as it was.It took him a while until he finally got up, leaving some money on the table as to pay for what they- or rather what the other two had been drinking. Then he walked out, calmly heading to the inn.  
As he got closer, her saw someone pushing Tobi against the wall. His pace quickened somewhat and as he got closer, he saw a brown-haired girl from earlier. She was apparently saying something as he stopped, shooting Yuka a cold look.  
"Let him go." He stated in a demanding tone. "Now."

Miya smiled at the clerk. "It's alright, I'm not very normal myself..." She laughed nervously, but suddenly she realized who the female who had just left with the man was. That one from the tavern; but what was she doing at the inn. "Excuse me, I'm just going to check on something." She quickly walked towards the door, her hand already on her back pocket, her fingers easily finding the needles in case she'd have to pull them out. She peeked outside only to find the masked person against the wall. "What do you think you're do-"  
_"Let him go. Now." _  
She was interrupted by that voice as she stepped outside. Turning around she saw a redhead boy, looking at Yuka with a serious expression.


	3. Part Trois

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Trois

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Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Yuka calculated her chances. There was the redhead there now, as well as the other chick from the tavern, and someone else approaching--although it was casual and unhurried. She was careless and irrational, she knew, but not stupid. She didn't stand a chance. Grudgingly, she let go of Tobi and stepped back, facing Sasori head on. "Perhaps you should keep your little pet on a leash. He broke into my room."

Tobi slumped to the ground, crying. "I thought it was our room, Sasori-san! It's not like she was naked or anything!" He muttered under his breath. "I would have picked my eyes out or something."

Yuka glanced back. "What was that?"

"Nothing!" Tobi squeaked.

Sasori gave a small 'tch' of disapproval. However amusing that last comment of his had been, they were in no situation to express that. "Tobi, why didn't you use your key? And if you didn't have one, why didn't you wait for the clerk?" He scolded his voice and expression now seeming uncaring.  
He sighed and grudgingly held out his hand to help him get up. "Next time you should be more careful kid." Yes, 'kid' and 'idiot' were his nicknames for Tobi, much like he used 'brat' for Deidara.  
He glanced over at Yuka. "He won't do it again." He stated.

"Sa-Sasori?" Miya muttered, frowning. Where had she heard that name before? Well, for a person, anyway; there weren't a lot of men named 'scorpion' walking around. She knew she had heard or read the name somewhere, but where? She was just sort of standing there, her hand moving away from the pocket. "Oh um by the way;" She looked over at Yuka, trying to block out the though of where she'd heard the redhead's name. "What happened to Arisu-san? The one from the tavern?" She asked, trying not to jump to the conclusion that something was going on. "I'm a um, medical-nin. If something's wrong with her I can help."

"...I knew of a Sasori once..." Yuka said absentminded-ly then turned to Miya. "Arisu-san?" Who was that again? Oh, yeah, the barmaid. "I regret to say that it is a bit too late to help her." She paused, realizing that that sounded very incriminating. "She's not dead. I don't think. She just, uh, thinks she is eloping someone and isn't here now." As odd as that sounded, it was the only way of getting rid of Arisu without harming her. Yuka figured the genjutsu would be wearing off any time now...

Deidara approached the group. Why was the barmaid and that other person from the tavern there? He narrowed his eyes. "Danna, you were hitting on her, weren't you?" Not that it mattered any...it was just odd seeing his Danna talking to women.

Yuka glanced at Deidara. "If you call that 'flirting' there's something wrong with you." Finding that an appropriate goodbye[who said she had to be polite? she walked back into the inn.

Sasori scowled. "Of course not, brat!" He stated with a glare; a bit too unusual. "I have more to do than sit around and flirt with people I do not know. Not that it concerns you, unless you're really _that_ jealous." His tone was still uncaring and maybe he should have thought twice about his choice for words. Oh well, what was said was said. He pulled Tobi to his feet and, without a word he found his way into the inn. He hadn't forgotten his key or room number. If the other two needed anything they could find him working on one of his most recent puppets.

Miya was not sure of what to say. Yuka had left when she had quietly asked who that Sasori she knew. She looked uncomfortably at the three men and soon after one of them left she decided it was best to do the same. "Well uhm... I guess I'll be going now..." She said nervously. "I have scrolls that took me a while to find and won't read themselves!" She said as she walked back in and past the redhead, down the hallway to look for her room.

Yuka sat in her room, counting her money. She had nothing better to do at the moment. Sleep wouldn't come. Of course, she could induce sleep...but then if she were to be attacked...Gee, why did she have to be so paranoid?

It took her no time to finish counting her money. She had 20 in Fire money, and 175 in Wind. It seemed barely enough to get anywhere while traveling. This meant she would actually have to work. Lovely. She shrugged. She shouldn't complain. She chose this for herself...which was much better than answering to someone else.  
Yuka grabbed a small notebook out of her jacket pocket and began writing. It always made her sleepy...eventually.

"...One more time, Senpai!" Tobi said, snuggled under his covers in his ducky jammies.

Deidara scowled at him irritably, tossing the children's book he held aside. "No. I've already read it twice."

"But I love the Little Mermaid!" Tobi protested.

Deidara rose and glowered at Tobi. "Go to sleep now, or so help me, I'll make sure you never wake up."

Sasori sighed irritably at the two. The second time Deidara has read the Little Mermaid for Tobi he mouthed the words; Tobi had asked for that story to be read so many times in the past that knowing it by heart was, at least in his case, inevitable. He sat over his covers, sealing one of his puppets in the scroll after making sure it was working properly. He leaned back and looked at the ceiling; being... Not quite a puppet, but not human either, he didn't need _much_ sleep. In fact, could his actions even be considered sleep at all? He didn't remember it the same way as he remembered sleeping as a child; he just felt himself slip into unconsciousness, to a location darker than black. No dreams, no nothing.  
Only to wake up when he _somehow_ knew he had to.

Miya sat on the small bed in the room with a scroll open in front of her. She seemed very interested in what she was reading, but she could feel eyelids becoming heavier and heavier as time went by, and if she attempted to do anything written in the scroll it might go wrong.  
She covered her mouth when she could no longer hold back a yawn and eventually closed the scroll and put it back on her bag which was placed on the ground next to her bed. It was her only possession at the time.  
After looking around the room once more, as if she'd see her friends there as well, Miya finally shut off what small amount of light she had used to aid her in her reading and curled up in the bed under the covers, falling asleep soon after.

The next morning, Yuka woke before dawn, dressed in her ninja gear, tying her Sand headband around her forehead, slightly to the side, and gathered her few belongings she carried on her, and headed to the lobby. The inn served a small continental breakfast, so she helped herself to some coffee, made the way she liked it: coffee with a little sugar, milk, and creamer. She nibbled on a piece of dry toast while she looked over the morning's newspaper. Nothing interesting seemed to be going on the world at the moment. Only thing of interest was that the Godaime Kazekage, Gaara, has announced indefinite alliance with the Leaf. Yuka had actually forgotten that Gaara was the new Kazekage. It goes to show how long it had been since she left. But that didn't matter now. She had to find her next client.

Tobi walked into the lobby sleepily, his stomach growling. He filled his bowl with lots of sugary cereal and filled it with chocolate milk. He also got two jelly-filled doughnuts and hot chocolate. It didn't matter how sleepy he was, sugar was always good. It was even better when it was complimentary.

Sasori could hear it when Tobi left the bedroom, but his eyes remained closed and he tried to relax while he had the chance. The more he stayed away from the hyper bubble (more so than he could remember Deidara ever being), the quicker he could regain some of his lost patience, which meant he'd be able to put up with Tobi a lot longer without wanting to - quite literally - rip him apart limb by limb.  
It was obvious he was "awake", though. He wasn't completely still and eventually he would open his eyes the slightest bit - only to close them afterwards because of the orange light that was slowly rising in the horizon.

Miya woke up the same way she always did when she wasn't home: slowly open her eyes, and turn to the side mumbling a soft "Huh...?", looking over her shoulder as if she would see someone sitting there, telling her to wake up. Maybe she was just going a bit crazy now that her friends weren't around, but that's how she had ended up getting used to being by herself. She slowly got up and got ready. She wrapped the Konaha headband around her forehead and let her hair fall down; it went down a bit below her shoulders. She picked up the key and left the room, making sure to lock it - her belongings were still there.  
She slowly made her way down the hallway and when she reached the lobby she paid no attention to the people present, busy choosing something to eat. She eventually got a cup of coffee and some food and sat down at a table, her eyelids half closed. She could almost hear her dead teammate scolding her for not being fully awake; it was almost _funny_.

Deidara quietly left the room, not wanting to disturb his Danna, whether he was awake or not. He walked into the lobby just in time to see Tobi stuff his face with all the rich, sugary food. He stomach churned and he suddenly felt ill. How could he eat that much sugar? No wonder he was so...well, Tobi. He strode over to Tobi after getting a cup of orange juice and cocked his head as he sipped his juice. "Honestly, Tobi, how can you eat so much junk?"

Tobi wiped his mouth with his sleeve as he stuffed his face. "It's not junk; it's _sugary goodness_, Senpai."

Yuka figured she'd have to leave the village pretty soon. Not much else could be done here, after all. She would have to go to a larger village, perhaps a city, with mostly non-shinobi residents, until she found someone who could actually use her talents. Until then, she could marvel the town folk by pointing out the obvious--while getting paid. She set the newspaper aside and finished her coffee.

As soon as Deidara left the room, Sasori slowly got up and took out one of his most precious scrolls; it's where he kept Hiruko. He summoned the large... _Thing_ and sat down next to it, checking every joint and weapon in search for anything he'd have to fix before they left. Sasori would refuse to leave if something was out of place with his precious weapon.  
Luckily he'd have free time while the other two enjoyed their food.

Miya took a bit of whatever it was she was eating - she hadn't even notice what it was - and took out a small list from her pocket. She looked at it for a moment, making small mental notes before putting it away once again. The list was just a reminder, nothing special.  
When she could open her eyes a bit more (she was still sleepy), she noticed the same three people from yesterday. In fact, she stared at their tables. In a rather awkward fashion as well: sleepy but somewhat surprised or curious -hell, she looked stoned-, holding the cup of coffee halfway between the table and her mouth.  
If only Kyo had been here to smack her on the head and snap her out if it.

Deidara noticed the other people in the room. He glanced at one of them, identifying her as the person Tobi whined about for hours because she tried to kill him. He hadn't been there to see what happened, but anyone who tried to kill Tobi must have been annoyed by him, so he probably deserved it. But to get pwned by a chick? That was utterly laughable. He had to restrain himself from laughing out loud. Otherwise, he'd choke on his juice. He glanced at the selection of foods--mostly breads and cereals. He needed food. His hands could eat all they clay they wanted, but it certainly wouldn't fill his stomach. He selected a pain au chocolate even though he had just scolded Tobi for his sugar intake and sat beside Tobi.

Yuka looked up and saw Miya staring at her. She cocked her head slightly. Being so early in the morning, she had a hard time processing why she was being stared at. After a long moment, she realized where she knew Miya from. "Sacre bleu, Yuka. You're losing it," she muttered to herself. Seriously, she was 25; she shouldn't be losing her memory so early on. Having nothing better to do, she rose and sat at Miya's table. She set her elbow on the table, holding up her head by digging her fist into her cheek. Her eyes bored into Miya's, filled with slight curiosity. She spoke casually, "Is staring at people a hobby of yours?"

Miya nearly jumped when Yuka talked to her and the coffee seemed to move inside the cup like a wave, nearly spilling over the table. If staring at the people willingly for a couple of minutes wasn't enough, she had soon ended up lost in thought and, considering she was still tired, she ended up in that state when people are there but at the same time really aren't. Daydreaming about nothing at all, you could call it.  
"Oh! I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to do that!" She quickly apologized as soon as the question processed in her mind - which really didn't take long, but even so. "I just remembered you and that masked person over there-" She made a small motion towards Tobi. "- And then I started thinking and didn't realize I was looking at you."  
She noticed Yuka has her own headband on and frowned. "So you're a Kunoichi from...?"

Sasori was still busying himself with Hiruko; one of the joints on the puppet's tail seemed a bit out of place and he'd rather get it working properly before they left. He looked up at a clock on the wall; if they took too long, he'd go and check if everything was alright.

Yuka's jaw dropped slightly as she pointed to her headband. "Seriously, you call yourself a ninja but you can't recognize other shinobi villages by their symbols?" She paused, realizing as it was on her side of her head and her hair covered most of that. "Disregard that last comment." she leaned forward slightly. "I am from Sunagakure...which, according to that newspaper over there, is in alliance with your village." She nodded to Miya's headband. "Don't take that as you can trust me though. I defected my village nearly 6 years ago." She grinned slightly. "Well, I guess you could trust me, but if you tell me something important the information might get passed along to the person with the most money." Her face darkened. "I'm not a very good person, as you can see." No, she wasn't a nice person at all. Her 'niceness' died along with her parents years ago. But, she still loved to talk.

Tobi wolfed down all his food and got more. He was standing behind Yuka, grabbing donuts as she spoke to Miya. He forgot that she reddish-brunette had 'tried to kill him' the night before. He turned to her as his mouth was full of food. "Oh, are you like a spy or something?" He swallowed his food. "Leader-sama is always looking for spies, right, Deidara-senpai?"

Deidara looked up, not really knowing what Tobi was talking about. He did his best to ignore him as much as possible on principle. "_What?_ Tobi, just shut up and eat."

Miya _was_ going to point out that she couldn't see the symbol on her forehead protector that well, but Yuka seemed to realize that a bit too quickly for her to react.  
She smirked at Yuka's little 'explanation'. She didn't expect to trust anyone on her journey with any secrets, not even the so-called allies; as far as she was concerned, nowadays no one could be trusted. Not even herself - to others, she was just as much of a threat as anyone at on her level.  
In fact, she sometimes wondered if she could trust herself: she had come this far without informing Konoha of any specific locations she had visited and somehow didn't seem to want to go back home anytime soon. Maybe it was just the excitement of being "free", but maybe she was changing... Was she becoming more like her old teammates? One of them, she had left for Otogakure and the other would have most likely abandoned the village if he was alive.  
"Thank you for the insight, I'll make sure to trust you as I trust everyone else I've met so far. Though, what I do know isn't of general interest so..." The smirk turned into a smile. She wouldn't push the subject any further.

She looked up at that man from the previous night, then over at the blonde one - once again, she had that feeling of déjà vu; she was sure she'd heard his name, somewhere - and then after a few seconds she looked back at the first one. Maybe... She'd better not even ask. Sighing, she resumed to drinking her coffee.


	4. Part Quatre

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Quatre

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Deidara forced Tobi to sit beside him as he chastised his underling. It seemed to be all Deidara did these days, at least when he was in custody of him. Luckily, sometime today, Zetsu was to fetch him. "You can't go around advertising about Leader-sama or our group, Tobi," Deidara hissed. "Yeah, she might be a spy, un, but did you realize she could be spying for the _enemy_?" When Tobi didn't reply, Deidara spoke again. "Hurry up and finish eating before Danna gets angry with us."

Yuka grinned. "Then you have nothing to worry about." Yuka stood up, pushing the chair in behind her. "If you ever need a spy or know someone who needs one, let me know. We can negotiate a fair price." She stretched her arms out lazily and headed back to her table, picking up her bag and making sure she had all her things.

Sasori ran his hand to the large metal tail sprouting from what seemed like a face in Hiruko's back. "There, all fixed..." He whispered softly, a demented smile spread on his usually tired face. Hiruko was one of his favourites and like a shell to the outside world he seemed to try to hide from so often. He didn't want it damaged in any way - not that he wished that kind of 'fate' to any of his works. He slowly looked up and noticed some time had already passed since Tobi and Deidara had left.  
"Does it take that long to eat?"  
He whispered to himself as Hiruko was once again stored in the precious scroll and he got to his feet, cleaning up the improvised workspace. Once he was done, he picked up a key and walked out the door.  
Although Sasori wasn't going to eat, he didn't plan on letting the other two stuff their faces and leave him sitting in a room by itself in the early morning.

Miya gave a soft laugh as she placed the now empty cup of coffee on the table where still stood whatever else she was going to finish eating. "I would, but I'm not sticking around long enough to find anyone who'd need one. Or to need one myself, for that matter. Good luck finding clients though." She didn't get up though; she still had food to eat and there wasn't any place she could go to in the early morning.

Though as a redhead came into the room with the same bored expression she had seen the day before, she thought twice about that. Luckily he sat on the other two's table, his back turned to her.  
There was just something freaky about him.  
This time she didn't even stare.

Yuka nodded. "Yeah, I don't plan on staying here to longer either, I'm--" Yuka's eyes glanced over to the red head she had seen the night before. They were now in a well-lit place and she could see Sasori clearly. Too bad she didn't have a camera. He was truly a prime example of the male, uh, body. She blinked. Why was her head making all those big phrases when the phrase 'He's hot' is so much easier?

Yuka smiled at Tobi and went to hand him her card. "You said earlier about your leader in need of...my services...if he happens to be interested..."

Before she could finish her poorly formed sentences, Deidara took the card and ripped it up and glared at her. "We're inclined to disincline...un."

Sasori looked up at Yuka; she was the girl who had threatened Tobi the night before. She had guts, to threaten an S-ranked criminal - though then again, anyone could easily threaten Tobi or any of them, really, as long as they didn't know their ranks.  
_"We're inclined to disincline...un."_  
He narrowed his eyes at his partner. "I beg your pardon? Last time I checked, _you_ don't make the orders, you _follow_ them, brat. I'm sure _he_-" He was of course, reffering to their Leader. "- Would appreciate it if he could find _useful_ spies."  
Of course he did not know just how useful Yuka was or if she was even reliable; but that's how it went: Pein would put them through tests. He didn't just trust anyone with the organization's secrets or any of their hideouts.

Miya ended up staring at them when Yuka walked over to their table. How come she still felt like there was something odd about them all? It made her uncomfortable. She bit her bottom lip and reluctantly stood up, walking out of the lobby and towards the hallway where she'd find her room. As she did so, she started tying her hair in a messy ponytail.

"And... Who was that leaf Kunoichi?" Sasori questioned when he saw the brunette leave; Yuka had been talking to her when he got here. Could they possibly be connected? He didn't want to imagine what it would be like if this new Konoha-Suna alliance caught up with the Akatsuki and their plans.

Yuka watched Miya leave and turned to Sasori. "She's a leaf kunoichi." Yuka shrugged. "She didn't say anything worth committing to memory, but if she did, I wouldn't say anything without money in my hand first." Yuka decided not to say anything about her being a medic nin. She doubted it would have mattered to them anyway. She paused, thinking of anything that could possibly get her hired. She needed a job, anyway. "If you are concerned about loyalty, I am loyal to myself and whoever is paying me...until the payments stop." Everything was simpler that way.

Deidara was not happy, and he didn't bother masking his displeasure as he sat at the table. Danna was actually taking this _Kunoichi_ seriously? She didn't seem that great at all. She probably couldn't even through a kunai straight.

"_Jealous_?" Sasori asked Deidara, the slightest hint of amusement present in his tone. He knew it wasn't true and he understood why Deidara wouldn't trust someone - he didn't trust Yuka himself. At all. He knew better than that. But if he was in the Akatsuki and he could find useful subordinates then why not? Leader would be pleased to know his members were determined to reach their goal.  
Besides, when was poking fun at his partner _not_ funny?  
"I surely do hope you have something better to do than sitting and sulking." _Brat_ he added mentally as he turned back to Yuka. "I understand... However, we all know it's easier said than done and our Leader would want to determine you're trustworthy in his own way. I cannot assure that it won't be the very least painful. It really isn't up to me. You could say we're very... 'Picky' when it comes to our choices. But in our 'business', we can't make mistakes."

Yuka smiled slowly. "Isn't that the same in any business?" This would certainly be interesting, Yuka decided. Of course, the idea of answering again to someone was a bit repulsive...but it wouldn't hurt any. Well, scratch that. It was best to say that curiosity [and her need of a job were getting the best of her at this point. "Well, if your leader decides he is interested...I can't guarantee where I'll be, but I'll be able to find you."

Tobi cocked his head. "How?"

"A magician doesn't reveal his tricks."

"You're no magician," Deidara muttered, raising from the table and heading down the hallway. He spotted Miya immediately. "You," he greeted rudely, pointing at her. "What do you know about that wannabe ninja out there?"

Tobi whined. "I don't understand."

Yuka rolled her eyes elaborately. Gathering charka in her finger, she set her finger on a new card. She pulled out her notebook she had written in the night before and pulled out a small map. A yellow dot blinked at their current location. She removed her finger from the card, and the late went away. Personally, she thought her invention was quite ingenious. She could meet her clients or potential clients wherever they chose, without revealing where their personal residences were, if they were that paranoid.

"True." Sasori nodded, agrreing with her rhetorical question. However, he could say for sure that the Akatsuki would need a lot more security and vows of silence than any other group of shinobi.  
He raised an inquiring eyebrow at Yuka at the same time as Tobi asked his question; just _how_ could she find them? Chances are they'd find her first.  
He looked over as the blonde got up, shooting a glare at his back - he thought the other one was just being childish -, but quickly turning his attention back to their soon-to-be spy.  
As she silently demonstrated how she could find her clients, a smirk played on his lips. "Smart." He stated simply.  
Now, anyone would think that was an understatement, but coming from Sasori it meant a lot. He was at least aknowledging the person the slightest bit and anyone who knew him would know that he doesn't do that all that often.

Miya nearly jumped when the blonde guy from before started talking. Near her. When just moments before he had been sitting somewhere in the lobby.  
She looked up at him and for a moment felt much smaller than she really was. However that feeling didn't stick around for long.

"Tch. Hasn't anyone taught you manners sir?" She asked quietly, holding the key in her hand. "I can't say it's any of your business what I know about her... I can tell you however, that calling her a ' wannabe ninja ' is most likely underestimating her abilities."

Tobi fell out of his seat. Did Sasori-san just compliment her? "The world is coming to an end," he said out loud, though mostly to himself as he climbed back into his seat.

Yuka beamed happily. "Thank you. I made it figuring it would be the best way to keep hidden places hidden." She tucked her hair behind her ear, pausing. "I suppose this is where I bid you farewell." Mostly because she couldn't find anything to say.

Deidara sneered at her. "Just answer the question. What do you know about her, un?"

Sasori glanced side-ways at Tobi, but didn't say anything. True, hell would surely freeze over if this girl proved smarter than she already seemed to be.  
"Why don't you stay a little longer?" He asked casually. "One of our group's members will arrive some time today and he can get in touch with out Leader a lot quicker." He of course, meant Zetsu. "I'm sure that in spite of his... differences, he'd want to meet you and pass on the information for the leader as soon as possible."

Miya did feel slightly intimidated by Deidara, but she knew better than to show it. "As I said, sir, I can't say it's any of your business what I know about her." She repeated, holding the key a little tighter. So much for not expressing her emotions.

"Au contraire, you see, it is my business. My danna is fraternizing with her, which makes it my business." He paused out a clay creature. "Tell me what you know...Or I'll have to use this on you. It won't be fun...for you."

Yuka obliged. Who wouldn't? The man was beautiful. "That's fine...I don't exactly have anything better to do at the moment."

Tobi sat in his seat, fidgeting. He looked at the card, which had Yuka's name enscribed on it. "What is your name?"

Yuka was puzzled. There Tobi was, looking at the card, unable to figure out what her name was. It wasn't like her whole name was in kanji or something, 'Yuka' was written in katakana. "Can't you read?"

"Nope."

"It's Yuka."

Miya raised her eyebrows, her mouth slightly open at the sight of the creature. _Clay_? Who did this guy think she was, an idiot? She was going to protest, but it's like for a moment the clay had... twitched? _You idiot, it's nor a real creature!_ She told herself.  
Miya looked from the clay to Deidara. "What, you plan on shoving that down my throat and watch me choke?" She asked, obviously surprised. "I'm sorry sir, but I could care less who your master speaks with. I'm not obligated to share information regardless of anything you might come up with to make me talk."

Sasori could help but roll his eyes a Tobi. _How_ did he manage to become a criminal? He couldn't wait until Zetsu came to pick him up today; he had joined the Akatsuki for reasons other than being a babysitter.  
_Yuka... That's a nice name._ He thought; he wasn't sure he'd ever met anyone with that name before. He noticed the village symbol on her headband was slightly covered. Frowning, he reached his hand to move her hair out of the way, only to let go as soon as he saw where she was from: his own birthplace.  
He was sure his bored expression was now mixed with something along the lines of shock.

Deidara rolled his eyes. "_Choke you? _Please, I'm much more artistic than that." His clay creature glided out a nearby window and exploded on command. "See? This is so much better than choking" Deidara said, looking mildly disgusted.

Yuka jerked her head away, surprised by Sasori's action and expression. She quickly regained her composure. "Does it surprise you to find you aren't the only person to abandon Suna, Akasuna no Sasori?"


	5. Part Cinq

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Cinq

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Miya bit her lip as she watched the clay creature detonate; _she_ has been underestimating him now. Way to go, hypocrite.  
Considering she didn't have any weapons at the time, she knew she wouldn't stand a chance against Deidara. Even if she placed him - or tried to - under a genjutsu, he might make half the building blow up. Well, anyway he seemed like he could do that.  
"Just my luck." She muttered, looking at her feet. Anything to keep from looking at the man in front of her and actually have to answer his question - though maybe she was forgetting the threats weren't just used when a person lied.

Sasori didn't reply right away. He was surprised that she was from Suna, yes. But not because he thought he was the only one to leave... He probably would have never left if it hadn't been for the fight that took away his parents' lives at the hands of Konoha's 'White Fang'.  
"It doesn't. I knew I'm not a sole exception." He finally stated, his tone colder, but a smirk forming on his lips. "However, I'm surprised you brats even _know_ my name nowadays."

Deidara smiled pleasantly. "Perhaps you would like to have a _friendly_ conversation now?" Within seconds, his whole demeanor changed--he was now in a more cheerful mood. If someone were to happen to walk by, they would simply assume that the two were having an innocent conversation, without anything such as blackmail or bullying.

Yuka frowned. "_Brat?_" She shook her head. "No, I graduated from the rank of 'brat' over fifteen years ago, thank you." She tapped her fingers lightly on the table. "And of course everyone knows who you are. I may be one of the few who would _remember _you--" She had been five or six when he left the village, but she remembered him. She had seen him quite frequently, not that he'd ever notice a short, awkwardly quiet 'brat'. She didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, because Tobi started talking animatedly. Inwardly, she decided it was best that he did interrupt her.

"Zetsu-san!" Tobi squealed happily, running up to the um, man, and embracing him childishly. He let go as quickly as he had gotten to Zetsu, looking up at him as he spoke so hyperly that he was shaking. "Zetsu-san, Zetsu-san! You see that girl over there, huh? That's Yuka. She tried to kill me last night but it's okay. She's a SPPPYYYYY. And, and, and, she has this cardy thing and this mappy thing and she goes and pokes it and it's like BOOOOOOMMMM! And all blinky-blinky-blinky on her map--She's cool."

Miya bit her lip again, still looking at her feet. She inwardly twitched at his sudden change of mood; it reminded her of herself the past few months. "I..." She shut up again. No, she wouldn't just tell him what little Yuka had told her, would she? She _was_ afraid, yes, but she was still determined to keep quiet.

Sasori raised an eyebrow. "Oh you remember me?" He asked curiously. True, he hadn't left _that _long ago, but it was still longer than one could imagine. He sometimes wondered what people said about him in Suna now.  
He was going to push this subject further, but was interrupted by a squeal of Tobi's. He glanced as Tobi ran over to a person who had just arrived and watched as the kid told him everything that had happened, like a child who spent his day at a birthday party and was just picked up by his parents. "Ah, Zetsu-san..." He glanced at Yuka momentarily. "This is the man I was talking about earlier." He looked back at Zetsu... Maybe not entirely a 'man', but still, it was better than to call him a large flytrap. "Zetsu-san, I believe we might have found a new spy. But I'd like to hear your word on it first."  
He didn't quite seem to care about what Deidara could be doing right now.

The white side of Zetsu smiled at Tobi affectionately. "So Tobi was a good boy?"

"YEP!" Tobi was shaking with delight. "Do I get my prize?"

Instead of answering verbally, Zetsu handed Tobi his new squeaky toy as he strode over to Sasori and this 'Yuka'. He took a seat on the opposite of Yuka and scanned her over.

Yuka did her best not to stare at Zetsu. As a kunoichi, she had seen some bizarre people, but Zetsu certainly topped her list. She noted he seemed to be talking to himself, but at such a low volume she couldn't hear him. When he seemed to finish, she spoke up. "I am Yuka...um, it would be a pleasure to work for your-er, group." Whatever that group was. She had overheard something about red clouds in the past, but had long since forgotten what they meant.

The black Zetsu spoke this time, his words seeming carefully planned out. "Of course, a useful spy is always a valuable asset...We will have to find a way for you to prove your worth before we take you to Leader-sama."

Deidara was trying to keep patient. He wasn't good at bending people to his will...without force. "Come on--" Deidara was interrupted by Tobi--who had a knack of doing such.

"SENPAI!" He wailed, running over, clutching his squeaky toy tightly. "I was playing with my squeaky toy Zetsu-san got my because I'm a good boy and I was playing, then I tripped and I got a splinter in my finger!" Tobi thrust his finger in Deidara's face, a good sized splinter sticking out of his finger. "Can you kiss it and make it better?"

Sasori sighed as he saw Tobi walk off with his new toy and Zetsu came over to sit at their table. He was silent as the man examined Yuka and spoke with himself - he was more than used to it by now, and knew better than to interrupt him.  
The girl also seemed to learn fast; she only spoke when one could safely assume Zetsu had finished his -literally- personal conversation.  
He nodded in agreement with his black side. "Do you have any suggestions?"

Miya was glad that someone had interrupted Deidara. More specifically, the one out of the three men who seemed to be on a constant sugar rush.  
She was going to take the chance to slowly move away, but she knew they'd notice and besides, the 'good boy' actually made her feel sorry with that splinter stuck on his finger. He reminded her of a helpless child. Or puppy. Either way, she walked closed to the two, gently taking Tobi's hand. "You know um... Sir, this won't just heal with a kiss. I'm a medical-nin. Even though this isn't in any way dangerous, I can help you out." She actually smiled at him, trying sound nice but avoiding Deidara. "Would you want me to do that?"

Tobi replied, his voice sounding like a childish combination of a whine and a plead. "Yeeesss." He turned to Miya and held out his finger. "It hurts so bad. I don't want my finger to fall off!"

Deidara rolled his eyes. Tobi was so immature. He was starting to think he wouldn't be getting any information out of her. There was the possibility of kidnapping her and locking her in a cell and threatening to let Zetsu eat her...but he was sure that would be too much trouble.

Zetsu paused for a moment. "Not the slightest."

Yuka felt her heart drop to her stomach in disappointment and anxiety. If Zetsu couldn't think of anything, she might as well count herself out of a job. Or, he or Sasori might come up with something...sadistic or just something she really wouldn't enjoy doing.

Miya's smile grew wider. "Your finger won't fall off, don't worry." She told him. Unlike a serious injury, this didn't take long at all; she barely had to control her chakra. She only actually did that to keep the finger from hurting as she counted to three and removed the splinter. It was... Big. She looked surprised, but quickly turned her attention back to Tobi's finger, trying to seal the wound. Although small, it could infect like any other and _that _would be painful. "There... You still have your finger, don't you, um...?" She didn't remember hearing his name.

"I understand..." Sasori stated, taking time to think of his next words. He couldn't come up with anything, but... "Is there any way to contact Leader?" He asked. He'd want to know if using one of his poisons was allowed. Maybe not one of the deadliest, but if she could endure only a few hours without telling one of them a "secret" told by the other, it would at least prove she was worthy.

"Tobi." Tobi said, examining his finger. "Thank you so much!" He beamed happily, then hugged her. "You saved my life! "

Deidara thought he was going to be sick. Seriously. There wasn't anything wrong with Miya--aside from not telling him what he needed to know--but Tobi's overall behavior annoyed Deidara to the point he felt that way.

Zetsu frowned. "Unfortunately, he's not available. He has a special 'mission' with Blue at this time." He paused. "Leader-sama trusts you judgment, Sasori-san. Do what you deem fit."

That didn't sound comforting at all. Yuka wasn't afraid of pain or anything, but what she didn't know worried her. Well, she had to be potentially worth something if she was sitting with them, wasn't she? Which means, she wouldn't _die_ ...yet.

Miya smiled once again as she hugged him. "Nice to meet your acquaintance Tobi-san..." She said, but then looked over at Deidara. She seemed a bit more… Serious, in spite of the still present smile. What was he going to do now? Was he going to let her go or find some lame excuse to keep trying to get her to answer? Not that he'd use any lame excuses so far; but she had just revealed her specialty. Who knows, he could use it against her. Or something.  
She shouldn't think so much.

"I will Zetsu-san." Sasori nodded. He still seemed thoughtful: he'd need to find a good way and a good place to put his test to practice. He looked over at Yuka. "If you don't mind, I'd like you to come with us as soon as we leave. I'm sure you're aware of the fact that we can't test you in this village, as small as it may be.

"I understand." Yuka replied without emotion, trying to get the knots out of her stomach. She couldn't believe she was this week. It was a disgrace to the name of kunoichi. She grinned slowly. "When do we leave?"

About that time, Zetsu stood and whistled, as if calling a dog. "We'll see you next time, Sasori-san."

Tobi let go of Miya and looked down the hallway. "Coming, Zetsu--san!" He scurried down the hallway and joined Zetsu, who left the inn.

Deidara turned his attention back to Miya. "Have we had enough distractions yet, or do you need some more?" His tone had a hint of frustration as he spoke to her.

"Alright Zetsu-san. You know where we're heading. We don't plan on changing our route." Sasori told him. He knew Zetsu would find them if it was necessary and if he couldn't, their Leader Pein would.  
He turned his attention back to Yuka. "Sometime today or tomorrow. No later than that. I need to check up on some of my puppets and I'll also have to look around to see if people here sell anything useful."

"L-look..." Miya started slowly, stepping back. Tobi wasn't here now and the small sense of security she had built up suddenly vanished. "I told you already, I won't say anything. Must you really insist on making me talk, sir?"

"What, would you rather do something other than talk?" Deidara asked, slightly smirking. It would seem that he was enjoying Miya's discomfort...but he really didn't care either way. He wanted answers, even though he couldn't be quite sure what he was seeking in the first place. Toying with her had turned out to be quite entertaining, despite his frustrations.

Yuka nodded. "I see." She set her elbow on the table, her palm cradling her cheek. She couldn't find much else to say, or think really. It was a good thing she hadn't checked out of the inn yet, she supposed. In the same thought, she realized she needed more caffeine. She walked over to the coffee maker and poured herself another mug then returned to her seat.

Sasori didn't look at Yuka until she sat back down after getting more coffee. Granted, he wasn't quite human anymore, but he surely remembered what being one was like. It was impossible to forget. Sometimes he thought he could still feel the human flesh as he made one of his puppets... Sometimes he could swear he'd feel certain objects he touched and sometimes he could swear he was feeling the wind in his face. But he knew he wasn't _truly _feeling those. As much as he missed them sometimes, he knew feeling was just another rock in the path of eternity.  
"So tell me-" He started slowly, his tone void of any emotion. The way he saw it, Deidara was probably sulking in a corner and even if he did enjoy the silence, he could always get to know the person he had deemed worthy enough to become their new spy. "_Why_ did you leave Sunagakure?"


	6. Part Six

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Six

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

"Actually, I'd like it if you left me alone to catch up on my reading." Miya glared at him. Well, not that it was very effective considering she _was_ feeling smaller by the minute. But she couldn't just fall on her knees and start crying now, could she? Wouldn't that contradict the results of all her hard work in all her life? Sure, she was far from being the _best_ but she should at least be brave enough to stand up for someone! Then it hit her: All the hard work over the years, and she was letting all she'd worked for slip away because of a pretty-faced explosives expert?  
She didn't feel as weak now. She seemed to build up enough courage to at least speak without stuttering. Even if he was still intimidating her - very much actually.  
"I'll have to ask now... Who the hell do you think you are? If you're so interested, ask her yourself or wait until your master does. As I said before: I don't have to tell you things just because you want me to."

Yuka inhaled the coffee's aroma, considering her answer. "My parents died...and the village could no longer provide me with what I want." But _what_ did she want? Yuka herself could not answer that, but she was positive that it couldn't be found in Suna.

Deidara closed the gap between them swiftly, leaving barely any room to breathe. "If I wanted Danna to tell me or the girl, I would have asked them, un."

"I understand." Sasori nodded. Somehow he felt like he could relate to her. His parents had died when he was just a child and although his grandmother had always been there, he had always been lonely and found that the village couldn't offer what he expected of his existence.  
Not that he knew if she was lonely or not, but if her parents had died, he doubted her life had been overly joyful.  
"And, forgive my curiosity, but what is it exactly that you want?"

Miya gasped, her cheeks slowly becoming a soft shade of pink. "S-sir, I'd appreciate it if you weren't violating my sense of personal space." She muttered. The fact that he didn't answer that 'Who the hell do you think you are' question had yet to process in her mind.

Yuka laughed awkwardly. "I'm not quite sure...It sounds so pathetic, I know...Suna was holding me back...too many rules, savvy?"

Deidara tilted his head slightly. "What?" He sneered. "Are you _scared_?"  
He realized seconds later that he hadn't answered her question, but he decided he would sound stupid if he answered now. As far as he was concerned, that was not a topic of interest. He knew who he was, after all.

"It doesn't sound pathetic to have a mind of your own." Sasori shook his head. He understood her: just like her, he had once lived under the strict rules and twisted teachings of Sunagakure. He knew for a fact that many other villages- actually, many other countries were even worse and reinforced their laws. It was partly what made him leave; he followed _his_ rules and for a long time now, the Akatsuki's as well. "Many of the rules are unnecessary, no matter what one may think. But following them keeps people in a false state of security."

"N-no!" Miya answered, staring at him wide-eyed. No, she _was_ scared, but right now that wasn't it. She could always kick him or yell or something; but once again, that thought hadn't processed in her mind. "D-Don't make me repeat myself."

"Oh, yeah?" Deidara taunted, leaning closer, his face inches from hers. "What are you going to do, un? Fight me?" He found the thought humorous. She couldn't do anything. He could feel it.  
He smelled fear all over her...and found it very enticing.

"Which leaves a perfect opportunity for someone like me to screw them over." She found people to be quite dumb, and extremely naïve. The always thought they were safe in the security of their precious husbands and sons, and their villages. It made it so much easier for Yuka to weasel information out of them. All she had to do was pretend to be a nice, compassionate person and lend an ear, and they would spill their hearts out.

Sasori smirked; apparently she was smarter than he assumed. Not that he thought she was dumb or anything – he _had_ offered her a place as a spy after all -, but he didn't usually meet a lot of shinobi with an attitude like hers.  
Though then again, most shinobi he met weren't what people called the "Bad guys". Tch. Such an expression was actually _offensive_. He didn't see what was wrong in achieving his goals if it meant stepping on others along the way; that's what was done to his family anyway, wasn't it?  
"What's your area of expertise?" He asked all of a sudden. Pein wouldn't accept anyone in his ranks without some more information than a name and a village, but he was really just asking out of curiosity.

"I-if I have to!" Miya answered quickly, feeling the blush deepening and making her face a shade of red. She wasn't quite sure if she really meant that, though.

Deidara leaned his head closer, whispering in her ear. "I don't think you can, un." He paused slightly. "No, I _know_ you can't, as long as you continued to be flustered like this." He didn't mind, though. It was a bit flattering.

"Aside from obtaining information?" What did she know? "I'm quite good at genjutsu. I'm okay at taijutsu and ninjustsu...I know a small variety of other things." She added, watching his expressions closely. "Like, I know the basics of poison and antidotes thanks to Chiyo-baasama." Anything else she knew was gained from just doing her job. Like properly serving tea and flower arrangement...she hadn't learned that when she was in the ninja academy like most kunoichi did.

"Genjutsu, eh? That would be useful." Sasori stated. However, his eyes widened a bit at the mention of his grandmother. Not just for the fact that she was alive, but also willing to _help_ someone out. Not that she had ever been ungrateful or anything, but he assumed she hadn't quite been the same ever since he had left. "And she's still alive...?" He asked slowly; he didn't seem to try hard to hide the feeling of surprise.

Miya bit her lip. As much as she hated to admit it, he _was_ right about that. She opened her mouth to say something but closed it right away, unable to form anything coherent. It took her a moment until she raised her right hand and placed it on his shoulder in an attempt to push his head away. Her look was enough to express the unspoken 'I want my personal space back'.

"Yes...last time I heard," Yuka replied simply. "I suppose you find it odd that she would help me. I guess it was because--" She paused, not knowing why Chiyo had helped her. She had simply asked and Chiyo obliged. "Maybe it was because she was sort of like my own grandma. I never had one...and when I was little, my parents were always gone, so I would go next door after school for cookies." Too much. She has said way too much. She inwardly winced, regretting that she had ever opened her mouth.

Deidara say the expression on her face and instantly stepped back. He had very few morals as an S-ranked nin, but he knew when he was going too far with a woman...taking advantage of a woman's weakness was unforgivable, well, it was if you went past the point Deidara did. He was now a half a meter away, his eyes boring into hers, but unreadable.

Sasori seemed even more surprised for a moment, but slowly he allowed himself to turn back to his seemingly bored self. He did not want to show anymore emotion, much less when it concerned his grandma. She had always been there for him when he was little, when his parents had been sent on 'another mission' and would 'take longer to come home' and up until he finally left the village once and for all. But... To think she had been there for someone else as well! She surely hadn't forgotten him, had she? Hadn't his subordinates - the ones who had seen her anyway - mentioned how she always said she only wanted to see her grandson once more? To anyone who'd speak to her, that's what she said.  
"... I understand." He stated; he should let out any frustrations on the girl. Then, the next question he had no idea where it came from. As much as Sasori hated it, it had quickly bitten its way into his heart.  
"How was she at the time?"  
He tried to sound uncaring and it came out alright. He didn't want her to know he still cared for the old lady, even though those feelings should have left him when his real body did.

Miya sighed with relief. This whole new sense of distance brought her some more security, though she still was worried about whatever he'd try next. "Is that all, sir?" She asked. She couldn't say anything else; she had no idea what he was thinking of now and she didn't want to say anything that could just make him change his mind.  
Though thinking about it, what she had said could contribute to that. Or him making her stay around long enough to make her answer the bloody question.

Yuka shifted uncomfortably. "She missed you a lot...misses, more like...she still puts up a good fight." Her eyes fell to the table. She knew she had said too much. "Are you still mad at me for you tripping over me?" That had been more than twenty years ago. Yuka had been about five and had been scared being at her house at night, so she went next door and was sleeping on a pallet on the floor in the living room. Sasori had gotten back from a mission late at night and tripped over her in the dark. He was so scary. Yuka had been glad to see him leave several weeks later, until she saw how sad it made Chiyo.

Deidara's lips curled. "Yeah. You aren't _capable _of anything I need." He was toying with her now, casually walking away, wondering if she would take the bait. If she didn't, that was fine too, he supposed.

Sasori's heart almost broke a little hearing that about his grandma Chiyo. Not literally, of course, but... He _did_ miss her and knowing he'd worried her so much when they went through such a big tragedy during his childhood and how she'd witness him distancing from most people. A little voice told him he should have said sorry.  
Her next question left him confused for a few seconds. Tripping over her? Oh, right, that 'incident' some time before he left. But... That meant she was _the_ Yuka grandma had sometimes mentioned! That was a bit shocking, but he tried to push that away and see if he remembered what had happened... Yes, easy enough. He had been so tired that night, that tripping over her had left him extremely irritated and he had snapped at her. But he had gotten over it soon enough; she was just a little girl, after all. And he knew what it was like to be afraid at the time as well - nowadays his fears were quite different. "No, of course I'm not..."

"_What?_" Miya asked slowly, clearly feeling insulted. What was she, some random idiot who had attained her rank by sheer luck? "What makes you so sure of that!" It came out as more of a statement than a question. She actually forgot about her reading for a moment as she stormed off after him, expecting an answer.

"Oh, good," Yuka said genuinely relieved, taking a large sip of her coffee. It took a load off her chest. She had always felt bad about that. If she hadn't been so scared, she wouldn't have been there, and Sasori wouldn't have left. Childish logic, she decided, knowing now that it wouldn't have made a difference at all.

Deidara turned and raised an eyebrow. "My, my, I haven't struck a cord, have I?" He sneered, finding this amusing. "You don't seem like the type of woman who would--how should I put this--pride themselves in such abilities. It's no matter, un."

"Did it bother you too much?" Sasori asked bluntly. From her reaction, it almost seemed as if someone had taken a weight off her shoulders.  
Had she been worried that he had left the village without forgiving her when there wasn't really anything to be forgiven or something like that? He was just curious; why would she have cared after all this time? It's not like it was her fault he had left and later killed hundreds of people.

Miya's mouth hung open. "Who the _hell _do you think you are to say that?" She snapped angrily, walking close only to raise her hand to slap him.

Deidara answered matter-of-factly. "Deidara, formerly of Iwagakure." He stood proudly, inwardly laughing at her reaction. She had taken the 'bait' and made this whole conversation amusing and worthwhile.

"I know it sounds stupid...I was a damn sensitive child back then. That's all." Yuka was not going to admit verbally that she had felt guilty for something that had happened decades earlier. Any normal child would have forgotten the incident within five years of the occurrence.

"All children are sensitive, it's part of life." Sasori told her. No, he wasn't trying to be nice, but he didn't want the girl to end up feeling bad about something that had happen so long ago. He _did_ keep some grudges, but this wasn't the case. "You seem to have grown out of that, though."

Miya had probably heard his name before because it sounded familiar. But she had long since forgotten the few conversations about the less-than-friendly relationship between Konoha and Iwa. Maybe she should have thought twice before speaking again.  
"That still doesn't give you the right to be a bastard to people who didn't do anything to you."

"Hey, hey," He held his hand up to hush her [the hand simply stuck its tongue out at her. "You were the one who got all defensive with me, remember?" Of course, he was referring to only moments earlier when she had flipped out on him as he taunted her. His previous actions were completely disregarded.

"Yeah," Yuka agreed, not having anything else to say about that. Any good trait she had possessed was long gone, and she didn't want to dwell on her loss of them, because it rooted down to losing her parents...something she didn't deal with 'properly'...probably not even 'humanely'.

Sasori stood silent for the next few minutes. That seemed to be it for the little 'Q&A'. He didn't have any further questions and anyway, he was sure he had asked more than the ones he needed answers for. So, he assumed, he'd owe her at least a couple of answers of his own. Hopefully not too personal... He felt like he was letting his guard down.

Miya almost stepped back when she saw the mouth. She'd never seen or heard of handmouths before and if he happened to be anyone else, she'd gladly ask if she could examine them. But of course, this was Deidara so it was a _no_.  
"Defensive? As if I didn't have reasons to!"

"Seriously, now, I was being quite amicable, I'll have you know! You are the one who made me come back, see. So you have no right to be defensive, un." There wasn't any logic behind that, but at the moment it didn't matter. Why did you need logic when you were annoying someone?

Yuka figured it was her turn to ask the questions now. She couldn't really think of anything to really ask, except the 'big' one. "When you brushed my hair aside, your skin brushed mine, astoundingly I found it cold. Which leaves me with two options. One, that you are dead. That is however, very unlikely, considering that would require a high-level forbidden jutsu, but you would not have been able to express emotions at all or act logically, which leaves me with option two. Since you are a puppet master, your greatest work would be to turn yourself into one, which leads me to my question--" She paused, inhaling deeply. She _knew_ asking this would be a mistake, but she couldn't resist. "Are you anatomically correct?"

"Oh indeed you were! _Quite charming_, I may add!" Miya's words _oozed_ sarcasm and she was glaring at him. "How is the fact that I'm the one who made you come back to mock me further happy?"


	7. Part Sept

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Sept

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Sasori wasn't expecting her to start speaking this soon, much less to start off with what he knew was one of the questions people wanted to ask the most but never really did. "Those are quite smart assumptions and I'm surprised you reached the correct conclusion so quickly." He complimented, in spite of hating this question. But he just couldn't snap at her. "However, and to make this as simple as possible... Making oneself into a puppet should be done gradually. The hardest part is to keep the heart functioning without any other organs present. Now, I can transfer my heart to many of my puppets; this means they would gain my facial features, my voice and so-on. But the body would still be the way I built it. So,_ no. _However, my... Original body, is a whole different matter. And I'd rather not talk about that."  
Of course he meant the body he was in now and... Pretty much all of the time.

"You wouldn't dare admit it, but you like me talking to you. You _like_ me pissing you off." He wasn't sure if she did or not, but either way he was sure he'd get a rise out of her. As long as she kept this up, Deidara would keep at it. Until his Danna decided it was time to leave.

"That's quite fascinating." Yuka meant it to. Someone like Sasori would be virtually invincible in combat. "So how does one turn themselves into a puppet without bleeding to death?"

"_No_, I don't. Don't put words in my mouth, it's not like you even i _know /i _ me." If looks could hurt, Miya's glare would be piercing a hole between Deidara's eye sockets. She didn't like how he'd find any and every way to irritate her, and she didn't leave because it would make her feel like a complete loser later on.

"It's a complicated process." Sasori answered. Well, it wasn't an actual answer to her question, but he didn't want to answer it.  
He and Orochimaru had done a lot of experiments in the past to achieve immortality. What Sasori had accomplished was more than just removing a limb like many puppet masters had done over time.  
He didn't want to explain the experience of dieing but even so not quite; it was a secret he'd never share. "... And as you said before, 'a magician doesn't reveal his tricks'."

"I _could_ know you," Deidara said thoughtfully, considering the idea. "But making you mad is more fun."

"Ah, touché," Yuka agreed, nodding. "But you've already revealed your biggest weakness to me." Yuka added pointedly. She had figured out that he was a puppet on her own, but he was the one who mentioned his heart.

A black haired woman approached Sasori and Yuka. "I'm sorry, but breakfast is over. You will have to take your chit-chat somewhere else."

"How intelligent of you to realise that." Sasori smirked. Yes, she was one of the few who would see that as his weakness. Now he'd let her figure out on her own why Hiruko was much stronger compared to most puppets. Like a shell of some sort.  
The redhead merely stood up moments after the lady spoke to them. He didn't even speak to her at all. "Are you coming?" He asked Yuka.

Miya scowled. "You're so childish! I can't begin to imagine how your master puts up with you. I'd rather spend an afternoon listening to that Tobi person than put up with you any longer!"  
... Maybe a bit too harsh. Tobi seemed nice, but he also seemed to act a lot like a kid and so she was sure she'd rather listen to Deidara's constant nagging - even if it made her want to rip out his vocal chords. But that's the only thing that came to her mind and that she had managed to say before she turned and started walking away.

"Ouch," Deidara said, feigning hurt. "That hit below the belt, un." It was quite insulting to be told someone would rather be around Tobi than him, but he couldn't let her know that. He paused for a second. 'You know, I really like you, un. You'd make a good pet." Payback was a bitch, un.

"Sure," Yuka hopped up quickly, grabbing her bag. Where they were going at the moment, she wasn't sure, but she'd go either way.

"Where to?" Sasori asked. Personally, he didn't find the need to go back to his room and sit there for who knows how long until they were ready to leave and he should at least look around to see if he could buy anything useful. At a cheap price, of course; he wouldn't want Kakuzu to complain about him spending too much money.

"A _pet_?" Miya repeated in disbelief, unable to process anything else but that sentence in her mind. She even stopped walking and turned around to face him. "What the hell is wrong with you_?"_

Deidara scowled. "More things than you know, un." It wasn't her business what was wrong with him. He had grown up hating his village--they hated him for what he was. So, he left after blowing some of his fellow Iwa-nin up...then Itachi came along...he shook the thoughts away, and went back to teasing her. "I don't have a leash or collar, but we could certainly go buy one."

"It doesn't matter, Sasori-san." Yuka glanced around the room to make sure she had everything. "I have everything I need, but if you want to go shopping I'll follow you around." That sounded so wrong. She wasn't a lost puppy, nor was he her master. "I mean, I will accompany you."

Sasori decided not to even complain about the suffix Yuka had used; she had brought him some insight on how his grandmother was - or had been - and that he was somewhat grateful for. "If you'd like to. I won't take long... In fact, I am not sure I'll even buy anything at all. You don't have to come unless you want to, though."

More than she knew? Well, that was obvious, Miya knew for a fact that the little she knew about him wasn't enough to tell his - or anyone else's - life story. But she decided not to ask because she didn't want to have to tell _him_ her share problems. She inwardly twitched at his next statement. "Since when did I agree to your sick wishes!?

"Meh," Yuka shrugged. "I have nothing better to do." She looked around. "Will your partner be okay not knowing where you are?" She had gotten the impression that the blond's life nearly revolved around Sasori...he did call him 'Danna'...

"You never objected, did you?" Deidara said pointedly. "A muzzle might be better though, you look like that kind that bites." Deidara was simply coming up with stuff as he went along. He did have to keep himself entertained until Danna was finished, didn't he?

"The brat can take care of himself." Sasori told her. Well, he at least hoped Deidara did. He didn't want to have to run off in a hurry because of some sudden explosion in some part of the village. "Haven't heard him yet, anyway, so he's probably out of trouble."

"That still doesn't make me a pet, much less _your_ pet!" Miya crossed her arms, glaring at him. If only she could come up with a way for him to leave her alone. Hopefully she wouldn't have to see him again after she kept on traveling.

"I can change that. I know mind-control jutsu." Really, he didn't, but his Danna did, didn't he? It was almost the same thing, anyway. "I could have you running around like a little puppy if I wanted to." He paused and added, "I wouldn't do that though. I'm too nice of a person." And of course, Tobi would willingly act like a puppy if he wanted...which he truly didn't.

Yuka smiled. "Okay!" She walked with Sasori out of the inn and down the street, glancing in the windows of small shoppes. Flowers, pottery, clothing...nothing that Yuka particularly really needed, especially the pottery. What good would that be to her? Despite the fact that she was practically a nomad, she no longer even had a place to call home, so she couldn't decorate it. "Anything in particular you're looking for?"

Sasori too glanced at the few shops they walked past. So many things, so unnecessary for someone like him. "Actually... Nothing in particular." He answered. He didn't know what kind of things they'd sell in a small place and considering he had been stubborn enough to _not_ look around last time and consequently complaining that Deidara had taken too long, only to realise what he had missed long after they had left a village, he decided not to make the same mistake twice. "I want to see if they sell anything remotely useful."

"Oh yes, a _lovely_ person." Miya rolled her eyes. By now she was willing to just walk away and leave him standing there, but she was sure he'd continue annoying her any way he could. And if he did know mind-control jutsu she'd have to be extra careful. "Don't even think I'm going to agree with you, nutcase. I have more to do than being your bitch."

Deidara gasped. "Such dirty words coming from such an innocent woman! No, you don't have to be my bitch." He laughed, knowing that Miya was at her boiling point. "You could be my Bonnie, and I can be your Clyde and we can go on a bank robbing spree." Deidara laughed inwardly, a bit shocked with himself. He has used one of Kakuzu's pick-up lines.

"Useful, yes." Yuka agreed, a bit absent-minded, she was staring at toys in the window of the toy store. More particularly, the teddy bear sitting in a rocking chair. She had always wanted one as a child, but she always got shuriken and kunai instead of teddy bears and dolls. "I don't think we'll find anything too useful here."

Sasori stopped at gave her an odd look; she seemed a bit distracted. He followed her line of vision and ended up staring at a teddy bear.  
Wait.  
A teddy bear?  
Why would she want a... Oh, right. When he was still in Suna. His grandmother had said something about her; he had just shrugged it off, saying that spoiling kids was useless. At the time he had been oblivious as to how he didn't use the puppets for fighting as a little boy. How they had been his solace.  
Only then did he realise that what he was looking at now was a toy store. He glanced at the other things in the window... And spotted a little puppet man. Like the one his grandmother had shown him that time when he was staring at his parents' photographs, alone in the room. The little puppet man timidly walking through the door that somehow made him smile. And that's when Chiyo had asked if he wanted to learn his now biggest passion.  
For a moment he almost stepped forward, willing to enter the shop. He could buy it- No, he could buy it _and_ the stuffed animal. But he knew that this was just like the other times he missed being a child. That he was now a grown up man and that his life didn't include much happiness. For the sake of the job.  
"It's amazing what you'll find in these small places." He told her, turning away from the shop.

_Innocent? Ha!_ As if Miya was all that innocent. It's not like she hadn't had her hands stained with human blood for more than medical purposes. However, she gave him an 'are you on drugs' look when he used that pick-up line. "So basically you're saying... I could be your bitch." She stated bluntly.

"Yeah." Yuka snapped out of it, resisting the urge to walk into the store to buy the teddy bear. Walking into the store would be giving in...and keeping the bear would be disgracing what she was. Yuka followed Sasori, walking a bit faster to get back into step with him. By now the village was more lively, its citizens out and about. Many of the younger women and teenage girls stopped what they were doing to stare and giggle at Sasori. Yuka wasn't sure what pissed her off more, that they were staring at Sasori, giving her dirty looks, or that she was letting it bother her at all.

Deidara gaped at her. "You mean you don't want to be?" He looked to his feet as he shuffled them awkwardly. "That's too bad...we could have had so much fun together, un..." Behaving this way reminded himself that he had been told that he should have been an actor once many years ago...He supposed he could have been successful in that field if he wanted to...he was able to control his emotions and expressions to what he wanted them to be...but that also made him an excellent shinobi as well.

This village was, Sasori noticed, bigger than he had assumed the previous day. Or at least had more people than he expected. He kept looking around at the windows of several shops, trying to ignore the looks he was receiving. It bothered him a bit because he wasn't generally the centre of attention: if anything, people glared at him. Or rather, glared at Hiruko for simply walking with his blonde-haired partner.  
"I should have brought him along..." He muttered, rolling his eyes.  
Of course he meant Hiruko, not the brat.

Miya blinked. Either he was really dense and didn't realise how annoyed she was, or he just had pretty complicated way to impress a person. If that's really what he was trying to do, which he most likely wasn't, but she wasn't quite sure of _anything_ anymore. "... You _are _aware of the fact that you compared me to a pet animal, annoyed me to no end and are _still_ saying I could be your bitch, aren't you?" She asked slowly.

Yuka had no clue who or what Sasori was talking about, she was diving into a foul mood due to the glares. Even some guys were giving her dirty looks. Freaky, right? It wasn't _her_ fault that the man she was walking with was beautiful and that _she_ was walking with him and not anyone else. She was getting fed up with it pretty quick. Instantaneously, she turned to a random woman [who happened to be dressed like a harlot and demanded, "What? Something wrong with my face?"


	8. Part Huit

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Huit

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Deidara sniffed loudly. "But I meant it in a nice way...I'm lonely and stuff...Danna doesn't put out." He inwardly snickered at that. Danna would be strangling him to know that Deidara had brought him into this. Of course Danna didn't put out. He was a puppet.

Sasori had his eyes closed as he kept walking, muttering something about 'irritating people' and 'turning them into puppets to burn them all' under his breath. He wondered how Deidara and Itachi could live with this sort of stares. Not to mention some of the other members, including the girl he hadn't ever seen much of.  
_What? Something wrong with my face? _Sasori stopped when he heard Yuka's voice. He looked over at the woman she'd been talking to, then back at Yuka. "Ignore them." He told her. "Jealousy won't get them anywhere."

Miya cracked her knuckles. Loudly. "Use. Your. Handmouths."  
So, it's not like she thought the guy was ugly or anything, but first, he had been annoying her for who-knows how long; and second, he seemed pretty sneaky. There was always the chance he was mocking her. Even more.

Yuka nodded, and stepped back in place with Sasori. She wanted to make the woman mad by grabbing Sasori's hand or something, but she figured that would make him furious…or worse. Instead, she smiled at her a bit condescendingly and continued on her merry way. They passed numerous shops and a playground, but nothing really caught her interest.

Deidara looked at his hand. "It bites. Hard." He looked up at her. "I'm being completely serious, honest. _Voulez-vous couchez avec moi_?"

The stares seemed to bother him as much or even more. It was like going to a museum, except this time the people who watched were the ones standing like complete idiots. Had they never seen someone of the opposite or same gender? Had they never seen two people walking together? That was the impression a lot of them gave away.  
"Seems this village hasn't got anything even remotely necessary..." He stated lowly.

"No!" Miya answered, like he had just asked if the sky was yellow with red polka dots. She even raised her arms in exasperation. "Stop asking that, I would have said yes already if I wanted to!

Deidara put his hand to his chest. "Ouch." Seconds later, he whelped. "Omigawd, stop biting me!" He was glaring at his hand who grinned back. He looked up at Miya, slightly disappointed. "Sorry to have bothered you." In a way, he meant it.

"Nope...unless you want crocheted coasters. or lace undies..." She said as she glanced the window of the last shoppe in the street.

"Not even if hell freezes over." Sasori looked away from that window. That sort of fancy clothing wasn't a pleasant sight to his eyes. But then again, he was a shinobi and although a perfectionist, he knew that some aspects should be based off simplicity. "Seems we won't have to worry about any extra things."

Miya actually gave a curious and at the same time surprised look when his hand apparently 'bit' him. Then came his apology and her expression softened a little. "I've been through worse." In cases of being annoyed, no, she hadn't. But it's not like this had been the worst event in her life. "Don't you... Control it?" She asked, glancing at his hand; she meant, of course, his mouth.

"Well, yeah, un," Deidara said. "But they're like wild animals...they'll turn on me any moment unless I keep them entertained." Which was chewing on clay and blowing things up...which he hadn't done a lot lately.

Yuka walked casually with her hands behind her back, and then let them go to her sides after stretching them out. "Well...what now?" She was getting tired of this town. She hadn't even done anything for them to be so rude. But now that they were on the edge of town, it wasn't so bad. There weren't as many people.

"Now we either walk or go back to the inn. Unless you have anything on your mind." Sasori shrugged slightly. He had already planned when they were supposed to leave; it would be later that day. Besides, he was sure his blonde partner would want to visit the village later today. If he'd gotten over the whole sulking thing.

"... I see." Miya didn't really know what else to say. She ran a hand through her fringe and stared at a random wall. Plans of reading scrolls and manipulating chakra had long since left her mind.

A growling sound emitted from Deidara's stomach. He looked down at his belly, surprised. "I'm hungry.." He said it more like a question than a statement. He dug his hand in his pocket, making sure he had money. "I want food...do you want to come?" He paused. "I have money, un."

Yuka looked around and found a large oak. Instead of answering him, she climbed up the tree the non-shinobi way by actually hoisting herself up by holding onto the branches above her. She sat on a branch and leaned against the trunk. "I'm fine here for now."

"Alright." Sasori walked over, but instead of climbing up the tree he sat down on the grass. There wasn't much point in leaving her here by herself now and besides, he didn't have much to do either, being finished with repairing Hiruko's tail and all.

"N-" Miya was going to answer the same she'd been answering all along, but a little voice in her mind stopped her from doing so. It's not like he'd poison her... And even if he did, she was skilled enough to at least try and find a cure - She was thinking too much again. She sighed. "Uhm... Alright then..." It's not like it would hurt, right?

Yuka relaxed in the tree, stretched her arms and glanced down at Sasori. "So, why did you leave Suna?" She was positive she knew the answer, but she didn't particularly want to sit in silence.

Deidara beamed happily. "Good." He was glad he wouldn't have to eat alone or with Tobi. Danna would sit with him sometimes while he ate, but he always felt like a glutton because Sasori wouldn't eat. They walked through the village and only found a ramen shoppe besides the bakery and the carneceria. "Do you like ramen?"

Sasori looked up at her. "Many reasons." He answered. He assumed there had been a lot of rumours spread around the village after he left. Some were true, others weren't. "One of them was to seek eternity."

Miya wondered why in the bloody hell she had agreed to come. Wasn't she supposed to hate him now, after all the time he had spent annoying her? Sometimes she wondered if her mind was functioning correctly. "Huh? Yeah, I do like ramen." She did. It was one of the things she liked to eat the most.

Yuka nodded slowly. "Eternity...what's the point of it?" She quickly added after she imagined herself old like Chiyo. "I mean, aside from living forever and not getting old...you'd be alone, watching everyone else's lives go by..."

"Me too." He walked into the shoppe and sat at the bar and ordered himself a bowl of ramen with extra noodles. When he finished, he turned to Miya to see what she wanted. "What do you want, umm--" He realized he didn't even know her name.

"Art. True, beautiful art endures the ages and lasts forever." Sasori explained. When she first posed the question, she sounded almost like Deidara. Luckily for both of them, she didn't say it was 'fleeting'. "I _will _live forever as my own art: never rotting, never fading. Present and becoming more valuable over time."

"Uhm... Miya." She answered sitting next to Deidara. She smiled slightly; whether or not he was still mocking her, it didn't matter. He was actually being sort of nice. "I'll just have the same as you, I guess." She wasn't all that picky with food.

Yuka didn't quite understand why he would want to live forever. Alone. Yes, she had been alone too...her father had died when she was a small child and her mother died six years later. Three years after that, she had abandoned the only place that she could remotely called 'home'. "Does it not bother you that by living forever you are damning yourself for eternal solitude?"

"Miya." Deidara repeated her name as the chef prepared their ramen. For once, he couldn't really think of anything to say, so he sat quietly as he waited on his ramen. It was served moments later, and he began slurping the noodles.

Sasori thought about her question. Did it bother him, really? He had taken a lot of time to think of that over the years, but had never reached a definite answer. He had grown used to loneliness, however, and almost embraced it. Almost. "So far it hasn't bothered me enough to make me regret my decisions."

Miya just looked up at the ceiling until the chef was done preparing the meal. She hadn't thought of anything to say, mostly because she had been too busy wondering what on earth had made her come along. When the food was finally there, she started eating in silence.

Yuka was quiet for a moment. Immortality...it would be nice, she supposed if she weren't alone. She knew she certainly didn't like the idea of becoming a withered up old hag. "But, after you live forever...simply a good many years, life loses its purpose. Do you have a purpose that last forever, aside from the artistic perspective?"

Deidara nearly absorbed his noodles. He didn't realize how hungry he had been. It might have also been that he didn't know when he would eat 'real' food again. When traveling, he had to bring his own rations--which were usually poorly prepared meals or dry rice waiting to be cooked. Depending upon where they were, he might have fish or berries...but that was quite rare. "So...where are you headed after you leave here? ...this village, I mean."

Sasori narrowed his eyes at her. "Isn't becoming my own masterpiece a good enough reason?" He inquired. True, he didn't have a greater objective, but he had never found the need for one. He had smaller goals that helped him keep going, yes, but they appeared and disappeared so quickly like Deidara's 'art'. "Defying the laws of life and death hasn't become boring to the point where I would stab my own heart yet. And when _our_-" He of course, meant the Akatsuki. "- goals are achieved, it will be even more exciting."

Miya didn't eat as quickly, but that's just because she had grown used to functioning without a lot of food lately. And she had never been a hand-to-hand combat person, so she didn't waste as much energy as most people. However, right now the blonde kind of reminded her of her really hungry self. Funny.  
"Huh...?" She looked at him and then at the ceiling, thinking of an answer to his question. "Well, I guess I'll be heading off to another, hopefully bigger town. Look for scrolls and information about medical ninjutsu and all... Why?" She looked back at him.

Yuka hopped off the tree and sat beside him. She didn't like looking down to someone she was having a conversation with. "Well, I suppose. Don't expect me to fully understand. I barely have any goals at this point, so living forever seems a bit dull..." She picked a blade of grass lazily. "But in a way I understand. Getting old sucks smelly ass." She surprised herself with that _description_ but it wasn't like she was going to get in trouble for using 'bad words'.

Deidara shrugged. "I don't know. I suppose I was just curious." He looked at her as he inquired. "But why _just_ medical jutsu? There's a whole spectrum of powerful jutsu out there."

Sasori raised an eyebrow. She had used an interesting choice of words. Not that he cared; after living with Hidan for so long, this sort of words wasn't all that shocking. "I didn't expect you to understand completely. I'm surprised you even care about what will happen in the future." He told her.

"Because I'm a medical-nin." Miya answered simply. "And because there _are_ a lot of secrets revolving around medical ninjutsu and I want to learn them. Plus..." She paused. "I'm not skilled enough with Taijutsu or advanced Ninjutsu. And my genjutsu is developed a lot already."

Yuka narrowed her eyes, slightly offended. "What is that supposed to mean?" Was there something wrong with not wanted to be all dried up and wrinkly?

Deidara shrugged. "I can give you a few pointers in ninjutsu." He certainly wasn't big on taijutsu. His specialty was long-range combat, after all. He paid the bill, but still sat at the bar with Miya.

Maybe Sasori had used the wrong words. He was slightly distracted, so it was comprehensible. "What I mean is, I'm surprised you care about what will happen next. Generally speaking. It usually leads to suffering from anticipation and that's never good." He knew it. He had become who he was so early because of that very same problem.

Miya finished soon enough. Eating ramen always brought a smile to her face; granted, this wasn't the same she could eat at the Ichiraku Ramen bar, but it was still very good. She then turned to him. "You could?" She asked.

Yuka nodded slowly. "I see." She understood that. She couldn't find much else to say, though. Instead of saying something completely random, she simply got out a kunai and dug in the dirt beside her.

"Of course I could, un." How could he have become a notorious S-ranked nin if he wasn't any good at jutsu? It seemed obvious to him, but now that his stomach was full, he didn't feel like being too sarcastic.

Sasori usually enjoyed the silence. He could concentrate on his own thoughts which he did enjoy more than speaking of random subjects that didn't interest him at all. However, this silence was a bit too awkward. "What do you believe art is?" He asked. He only knew Deidara's view on it... The blue-haired girl - he couldn't even remember her name most of the time - had never bothered to give her input on it.

"That would be... Nice of you." Miya smiled weakly. It's not that she thought of herself as useless - she was at a jounin level, for Kami's sake -, but she knew that her abilities could only help her so much. Not that she was aiming to improve in every aspect, but he was offering to help, no?  
... Unless he was just joking again or would ask something in return.  
She tried to think he wasn't.


	9. Part Neuf

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Neuf

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

"Art..." Yuka thought for a moment, and spoke what she truly thought. "I think it can be anything one finds beauty in. Abstract or realistic..." She zoned out for a bit, trying to gather her words. "I think art can be fireworks, cooking, painting..." She didn't bother to add the last word. Love. That was an art, wasn't it? She kept that to herself though.

Deidara stood. "We'll have to find an open area." He walked out of the shoppe and looked around. As soon as Miya got out of the shoppe, he walked towards the outskirts of the village. The area had a few trees and shrubs, but no buildings to get in the way.

"But fireworks are only there for a moment and a lot of those won't last forever. Painting will last a long time, but it will eventually fade..." Sasori didn't sound irritated when he said that; he merely expressed his own opinion. She seemed to have a pretty... General view on art. At least from what he understood, she didn't think it was something specific, like he thought it was eternal and how Deidara thought it was fleeting.  
He wasn't quite sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but it was her opinion. As much as he hated to admit it, he'd have to respect it, just like he silently respected his own partner's views.

Miya just sort of followed. She was cursing fate for making her forget her weaponry, when she realised she _did _bring at least a couple of senbon needles. She always found it funny how they called people who used them 'masters of illusion', at least considering her areas of experience.  
She looked around the area they had reached. "This feels like training with Aiko-sensei again..." She said, more to herself than to Deidara.

"The memory of the firework's beauty is eternal...paintings don't fade if they are properly cared for..." Yuka stared at the clouds. The sun was very bright, so she looked across the land instead. Several meters in front of her, an extremely large man walked by--he was wider than he was tall. A laugh escaped from her mouth as she covered her eyes. "That is not art." She was in such a fit that she fell sideways on Sasori. It took her three tries to sit up straight again as her laughs consumed her and her body was limp. When she finally got up, her face was beet red from both amusement and embarrassment. "..Sorry...'

"Who?" Deidara asked, but not really caring if he got an answer or not. He found a random spot in the clearing and stood there, then turned to Miya. "It will be much easier if you told me what you already know, un."

Well, she did have a point. Memories would last forever and paintings could be cared for, but still... He didn't think it was compared to the beauty of his puppets. He looked over when she pointed out the rather... Large man. It reminded him of Hiruko when he was human, except the man had been taller than he was wider. "No, it's n-" He didn't get to finish that when Yuka fell on him. If he could, he certainly would have blushed.  
She eventually got up, but he was still surprised. "It's alright..." He stated slowly, unsure of what to say. He never really accepted apologies.

"Never mind..." Miya shook her head. Yamada Aiko was one of the least known people in Konoha. The only thing worth mentioning was her killing this one corrupt man that had left the village and later came back, nearly succeeding in killing some people very close to her.  
"Well um..." She looked down at her feet. She wasn't used to this sort of thing anymore. "For ninjutsu just... Think... Basic Jounin level."

Yuka calmed down moments later. The man had been so funny looking to her. It was so mean to have laughed but she couldn't help it. "It's probably safer to look at the grass." There weren't any unnaturally large men in the blades of grass.

"Then you can perform a shadow clone," Deidara said simply. He didn't know how to do that, Iwa had their own kind of clones. Clay clones[if I remember correctly. . He put his hand to his chin, thinking. "What are your elements?" He wasn't sure how he was going to help her, he was going to have to wing it, like he did most things.

Sasori watched the man walk off with an angry face; sure, it wasn't his fault, but it wasn't other people's fault either if it was funny. Not that it bothered him. First off, he didn't laugh at random people and second, he really didn't care if they felt hurt. "Not your fault."

"Um... Earth... and Wind..." Miya had no idea how that would help but she answered, anyway. "Just one thing... What _do _you want in return?" She figured he'd want something, unless he had an astronomic change of heart.

"I know," Yuka said, getting out her knitting. Her yarn was a yucky off-white color, but it was the cheapest the fabric store had when she had bought it. She heard voices, and looked up to find some kids talking amongst themselves, pointing at her and Sasori. This time it didn't make her angry, because she overheard something about the tree they were sitting beneath. She went back to knitting and was surprised to find a girl approach her. It surprised her more that she sat down beside Yuka and Sasori.

The girl couldn't have been older than seven or eight, as she sported a yellow summer dress and pigtails. "Are you _knitting_? My grandma does that. I thought only old people did that. Is that a _sock_? Why don't you just buy one?"

Yuka looked up at the girl. "Because I'm poor."

"Why are you poor?" She glanced at Sasori. "Is your husband an alcoholic and spend all your money?"

"_No._" Yuka said firmly. "He is not my husband, I highly doubt that he's an alcoholic, and I'm poor because I haven't been working as much as I usually do."

The girl cocked her head. "Why aren't you married? That's what everyone else does."

Had Yuka been speaking with an adult, she would have been mad. But kids asked questions without finding them rude. "Perhaps I am not like everyone else." Yuka said, looking down at the sock she knitting.

"Hey, those are my elements too!" Deidara was delighted, this made it much simpler for him. _What did he want in return?_ "I don't want anything from you. Just pay attention, un." He used a jutsu that unearthed the ground, the piece he was standing on went up in the air a few meters. He knew he wasn't a good teacher, but he figured a good sparring match would help her a lot. While the first jutsu he used was working, he created a clone and his real self jumped back amongst the rocks and earth.

His clone looked down at Miya. "We'll start with a spar, un. You'll have to come after me with the intent to kill. Can you do that?"

Sasori raised an eyebrow at her when she started knitting, but made no comment. He just sat in a less awkward silence, enjoying the morning atmosphere, slowly letting his eyes close. The sounds of children didn't bother him, as he didn't even bother too look at them and thus did not see if they were looking over at them or just playing.  
However, his eyes snapped open when he heard a little girl's voice, much closer than the ones that he had been hearing in the background. She had even sat there and what surprised him the most were her questions.  
What was wrong with knitting? At least Yuka was smart enough to do so. Then he heard Yuka's answer... And then yet another question from the little girl. With a look directed at him.  
_An alcoholic? Most certainly not!_ He thought angrily. However, he refrained from even glaring at the girl. She was just naïve, like he had once been. Like all kids were.  
And wasn't she married?  
He laughed softly at that one and a small smile crept onto his face. Not because of the fact that Yuka wasn't married, but because of the way the girl had posed that question. It was cute.  
"Because she's free like a bird in the sky." He said in a barely audible tone.

Miya was not expecting that. _Of course_ she could do what she asked, but she was unprepared for this... Well, mostly anyway. Though then again, unprepared shinobi could still put up good fights.  
... She just had to figure out how to do that now.  
"I guess so..." She answered. Security wasn't on her side today, was it?

Yuka thought she heard Sasori say something about birds, but she disregarded it. If he had wanted her to hear what he said, he would have spoken louder.

"But don't you want to get married so you can have babies?" The girl asked, making a small mount in the dirt.

The girl was clearly naive, but she was young so it was expected. "Babies?" Yuka repeated. "Even if I wanted them, I do not have a stable enough lifestyle for them" At one point, Yuka had yearned for children, but staying in one place didn't suit her. Plus, she had never found anyone she could mildly tolerate anyone enough to 'settle down' with them. Any desire Yuka had about such things had been locked away years ago.

Deidara's clone and jumped toward Miya. "Are you just going to stand there, Miya?"

Sasori closed his eyes once again. He knew this type of conversation; annoying kids used to ask him about his family when he was little. He knew how a question led to another and so-on until it became intolerable. However, he once again decided it was best to not even do as much as cast the child a nasty glare.  
"I think your friends are calling." He said aloud. _Maybe_ they did, maybe they didn't. It didn't matter, really, as long as the kid forgot half the questions she«d most likely ask even if she shouldn't.

Alright so, she wasn't ready. At all.  
It took her a moment for her mind to process the order to jump back, which she did just in time to get away from his clone. She made two clones of her own, her eyes darting around for a spot where she could start a genjutsu. It's what she always did.

The little girl glared at Sasori, her bottom lip protruding. "You're just saying that so you can make out with her."

Yuka all but dropped her knitting. "_What?_"

"Don't act like you don't know." The girl said. "My sister does that to me all the time." The girl left with a huff, leaving Yuka in a slightly disturbed state of shock.

Deidara deflected the genjutsu, and after numerous jutsu signs and hand-to-hand combat, he panted, slightly bent over with his hands on his thighs. "I must say, you were a bit better than I expected, un. The only thing is...you need...to adapt to the situation."

Sasori's eyes snapped open and he couldn't help but glare at the girl now, more out of shock than actual anger. He wasn't, by any means, her sister and he certainly did not share the same kind of personality.  
Unlike Yuka, he didn't say anything, knowing very well that he'd probably say exactly what he shouldn't. And luckily for him, she ended up leaving.  
"... Kids." He grumbled.

Miya had ended up sitting on the floor, breathing heavily. She had a couple of wounds, yes, but nothing like being stabbed or anything even remotely related. She looked up at the blonde and smiled. "Thanks... And yeah, I guess I really do. But it's just that... I learned in a different way when I was a kid."  
True, when she was little she was the 'support' part of the team. His teammates had done most of the hand-to-hand combat, not because she was weak but because her strength rested elsewhere.

Yuka wasn't really disgusted with the girl, but a little annoyed. That annoyance made her in a too foul a mood to finish knitting, so she put away her sock. "That was interesting..." She said a bit dully, not knowing what to do now. She stood and stretched. "Is there anything else we can do to pass the time?" By 'we' she mostly meant herself, and in no way was she implying what the little girl had. She was just a bit bored.

Deidara frowned. "But it's different now, un. You have to be able to take care of yourself, without any help from anyone else." He glanced around. "I should probably find Danna now. You can come if you want."

"Get ready to leave." Sasori answered as if the question had been in his mind long enough for him to answer it without thinking. He slowly stood up and without another word started walking back to the inn, ignoring any looks he'd still receive.

"Yeah, I should." Miya nodded, pushing the thoughts to the back of her mind. She quickly tied her hair in a rather messy ponytail before she got up. "Do you want me to?"

Yuka nodded and headed back to the inn, ignoring people in general. She had better things to concentrate on, like breathing...it didn't _require _concentration at all, but it kept her mind and attention off the annoying villagers. She supposed ignoring them helped, as she arrived to the inn in no time.

Deidara shrugged. "Sure. I think we're headed to the same place right now anyway." He started walking in the direction of the inn. "My rendezvous point with Danna is the inn," He explained.

At least the street where the inn was located wasn't as crowded and as such, neither of them had to deal with the villagers acting like they were creatures from a completely different world. He calmly went in, but didn't go to his room; he'd wait for his partner in the lobby.

"Alright then." Miya followed quietly. She didn't mind him as much now, but still something in her mind told her she shouldn't get too attached. What point was there when she wouldn't see him again as soon as she headed off to another town?

Yuka didn't have anything in her hotel room. She carried her belongings with her at all times. It wasn't like she carried much on her anyway. While Sasori waited for his partner, Yuka checked out from the hotel. She nearly cried out in dismay when she found that the fees she owned nearly took up all her money. She tried to brush that off. She had plenty of weaponry at the moment, and she had enough rations to last her about four days if she ate sparingly. After she counted out the money she owed, she stood idly beside Sasori.

Deidara walked casually down the street with Miya, his fists shoved in his pockets. He couldn't find much to say to Miya. She made pleasant company, especially compared to Tobi, but since she had turned down both his offers of being his pet and his 'Bonnie', he figured the next time they crossed paths-if they did-they wouldn't be allies or even in the neutral. He held the door to the inn for her, and when he walked in, his jaw dropped, and he was hysterical. "Danna? You haven't been waiting _too_ long, have you?"


	10. Part Dix

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Dix

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Sasori had been staring at the door with his arms crossed, as if waiting for Deidara to come in at any minute. And indeed it didn't take him long to see the door opening and two people walk in, one of them being his partner and the other one... Some random Leaf shinobi.  
He shook his head at Deidara's question. "No brat, luckily enough, I haven't." He answered, casting him a cold look which he momentarily directed to the brown-haired girl. "And who's that?"

Miya actually just sort of stood there with a hand on her hip, quietly watching the small exchange of words. When she felt the redhead staring at her, her expression grew more serious, something that hadn't been happening so frequently lately. "Kurosawa Miya..." She answered, though his look seemed to tell her that he didn't want to hear it from her.

Deidara was relieved. Danna was a pain to deal with when he's had to wait around for someone. He didn't care for the cold tone Sasori used when asking who Miya was, but it was expected. Danna typically wasn't the friendliest of people. "This is Miya." Deidara said. He wanted to say his 'friend' but he didn't know Miya that well...and Danna would probably get mad at him for some reason or another. "She's my, um, new acquaintance, un."

Yuka looked over at Miya and smiled. "Hallo there," she said calmly but cheerful. Yuka hadn't seen her since this morning, but she had left when Yuka had approached Tobi and Sasori. Deidara had gotten up and followed her...had they spent the day together? It wasn't her business at all, so she didn't bother asking.

"Nice to meet you..." Miya told Sasori quite slowly, almost afraid he'd yell at her for some odd reason. Luckily Yuka spoke and she didn't have to look at the redhead for too long - not that he was ugly or anything. He was just... Freaky. "Hello." She said, smiling kindly.

Sasori just sort of glared at Miya, but didn't say anything else. He'd spent the day with Yuka, so he couldn't actually shun Deidara for walking to the inn with a girl - who knows, they probably just met outside -. However, he wonder what was up with their appearances. They looked like they had been in a fight... Maybe a catfight, but a fight nonetheless.  
"Why do you look so tired?" He asked both of them. With all the questions he would ask it almost made him feel like he was Dei's mother. Yes, _mother_. "Well?" He looked over at his partner only seconds later. "Don't just stand there brat, answer the question and hurry up to go get your things. I don't want to be kept waiting."

Yuka frowned at Sasori's whole attitude with Deidara. It wasn't her place to say anything. She had to admit, they did look quite roughed up, but there were numerous ways one could get in that...condition.

"We were just sparring, Danna," Deidara said swiftly, hurrying to his room to get his things. A few minutes later, he came back with his things, although he looked the same as he had before. His Akatsuki cloak was large enough he could hide things without it being obvious. He looked to Sasori, then turned to Miya. He was not exactly sure what to say. "Um...today was entertaining, un."

Sasori shook his head and walked off to check out of the inn once and for all. He paid for it all, wondering how Kakuzu would react to the price; sure, it wasn't an astronomical bill, but he usually made them stay in the worst of places because of their funds.  
He returned at right about the same time as Deidara and turned to Yuka. "Do you have everything you need?" He asked.

"Yeah..." Miya said awkwardly then adding '_Aside from the whole 'pet' thing_' in her mind as an afterthought. She ran a hand through her fringe and looked down at her feet. "Anyway, nice meeting you Iwa no Deidara. And thank you for the help."

As he heard those words, Sasori looked up at his partner and shot him a look that, although difficult for others but either of them to perceive, meant that he was or would demand an explanation for what the girl had said.

Yuka nodded. "I have everything." She nearly always carried everything on her. It was the best way for her fight if she were ambushed. While Sasori shot Deidara 'the look' she slipped out of the inn and waited for the two in the fresh air.

Deidara smiled. "You're welcome." He lowered his voice so Danna couldn't hear him. "It would be awesome if we met again soon, un." He bowed slightly. "Until we meet again, Kurosawa Miya." He too, walked out of the inn.

Miya smiled. "Yeah, it would." She said in a tone just as low as his. She nodded in a way to say goodbye and walked off in the direction of the hallway where her room was and theirs had once been.

Sasori left the inn just after Deidara. He didn't particularly care to say goodbye or even reply when the manager had wished them a good trip; it's not like he planned on coming back anytime soon, anyway. He closed the door and stepped out, already holding the scroll with which he'd summon Hiruko in the outskirts of the village. "An explanation, brat." He demanded. "Which reminds me that Yuka will be coming with us."

Deidara glanced back at the inn, then turned to Sasori. "She's meh friend, un." He wasn't exactly sure of how to explain about Miya. Instead, he shot Yuka a meanish look with his eyes narrowed. "How come you friend gets to come, Danna? Does this mean _I_ can bring my friend?"

Yuka stood there quietly, this conversation did not involve her. She instead focused on Hiruko. It was a very _interesting _looking puppet. She didn't recall seeing that one when she was a child. Perhaps this puppet was newer...or she had been unobservant.

Sasori scowled. "Zetsu and I agreed to test her before she officially becomes on of our spies. That's why she's coming with us." He explained impatiently. "So unless that girl is in any way useful to us, no, you cannot. This isn't a field trip, brat, you're not supposed to make friends you want to bring home."

Deidara pursed his lips. "She's a medical ninja. We haven't had a decent medic since you sent Kabuto with _Orochimaru_."

Yuka knew that name, but paid their conversation no further mind. Inwardly she was rooting for Deidara...Miya had been really kind to her.

Deidara just had to bring up that snake... It made Sasori slightly irked to hear the name of his former partner, the one who had betrayed them and was now working to gain power of Uchiha Sasuke's body. It's not like they had always hated each other, really, but the redhead lost all respect for Orochimaru when he left.  
As much as he hated to admit it, Deidara was right. But... He just wouldn't say yes. "_No_. I'm there for antidotes and Kakuzu is there to sew deep wounds. And no one else in the group has agreed to this. Besides, she is a leaf shinobi and I can hardly believe she left her village."

"Maybe she hasn't," Deidara said thoughtfully. "But just think, if she hasn't severed her ties with the leaf, she could be our subordinate." He said in a sing-song tune, doing his best to convince Sasori. Unfortunately, Danna's mind couldn't be changed...usually.

"..." Deidara had a point. But Sasori wouldn't admit to it, would he?  
He _should_ but he didn't want to. He stood in silence, thinking, considering the possibility of letting that girl come along. She couldn't do any harm, could she? They were S-ranked criminals and she couldn't possibly be stronger than a Jounin. Maybe he could just... Let her come with. Watch her die a slow and painful death on the way. Then prove his point to his partner.  
"... She better hurry."

Deidara was ecstatic, but he didn't let more than a wide grin show his glee. He ran back in the inn and found Miya and grabbed her wrist. "HEY! Danna says you can come with us. We gotta hurry though, or he'll get angry, un."

Yuka rocked back and forth on her feet. She smiled too. She grinned at Sasori and said teasingly. "Oh, _Danna_, you're too kind." She didn't mean it in a bad way, more as a compliment masked by her sense of humor.

Miya was just about to open her bedroom door when she felt someone grabbing her wrist. "D-Deidara-san?" She asked in a surprised tone as he spoke. "Y-You want me to come with?" She asked as she opened the door and quickly gathered what few belongings she had - she was going to leave now, anyway. She walked back outside the room, still looking confused. "Why do you want me to come, anyway? I'm... Still part of Konoha... Sort of."

Sasori narrowed his eyes at Yuka. "Don't call me that." He told her in a serious tone. It was something he only let Deidara get away with. Besides, it _would_ be awkward if other people heard that and started treating him and Yuka like a married couple. "I'm just trusting his judgment."

"We'll figure that out later, un." He was in such a rush, he nearly pulled Miya out of the inn. He wasn't trying to be mean of course, it was as he had said a moment earlier. Danna would get angry if they took too long. "Okay, Danna, we're ready." It was _after_ he said that he turned to Miya to _see_ if she was ready.

"Okay," Yuka said lightly, pulling a strand of hair behind her ear. She stood there quietly until Deidara and Miya came out. "So, we can go now," Yuka stated although it was not directed at anyone.

"H-hey!" Miya didn't have time to react before she was being dragged out of the inn. Luckily she had paid in advance out of fear of spending all the money she currently had with her - which wasn't really that much. She nodded at Deidara after he spoke with his Danna; she was ready as well, albeit confused as to why he had come back to get her.

Sasori examined the kunoichi standing next to Deidara. She looked pretty plain and she didn't even look at him. Why was that, fear? He almost laughed at that kind of thought; had she no idea who she was messing with? She'd surely get killed soon enough.  
"Next time don't do things in such a hurry, brat. Now let's get going." He stated as he started leading the way to the exit of the village.

_Talk about impatience,_ Miya thought, now looking more serious than before. She just followed along; apparently she didn't have any input on the situation, or at least one that would be taken into consideration. _Oh well..._ It's not like this would hurt.

Deidara followed Sasori in silence. He knew better than to talk too much while they were traveling. Danna got irritated so easily. He glanced at Yuka, who would have been instep with Sasori [had he not been in Hiruko. She walked sort of lazily, but it seemed like she had figured out not to talk when Sasori was in such a foul mood. It didn't help any that they had such a long way to travel to get to their destination.

Yuka found the walking in silence very dull. She didn't say so though. She wasn't scared or anything, of course. She just found being left alone to her thoughts when there were other people around was boring. Her thoughts began to bother her though. She was supposed to undergo some kind of examination to see if she were trustworthy or not. Her vivid imagination had created very grotesque images of what she would possibly have to undergo, which wasn't really comforting. Closing off her disturbing thoughts, she looked at Miya as she walked and mouthed the word 'hi'.

Miya decided not to speak like the other three. Sasori had seemed cold and unfriendly enough already and she didn't want to irritate him out of fear of losing a limb or two. She smiled a little when she looked at Yuka, the first person she'd talked to out of them all. Understanding the mouthed an 'hello' and looked up at Deidara.  
"Why am I here?" She whispered as low as she could. The puppet master was walking ahead of her, so she doubted he'd hear-

"You better not start chatting like old ladies. Or else." The redhead said bluntly, his voice sounding deeper now that he was inside Hiruko. How did he hear? He had a very good hearing.  
A sound of metallic joints, and what seemed like some movement from the back of what had once been a human being was the proof that he didn't ever state empty threats.

Deidara debated on whether to answer Miya or not. He didn't want Danna to get madder, but he wanted to answer..."Danna, it's _too_ quiet." He got out a wad of clay and his hand began chewing on it.

Yuka bit her lip uncomfortably. She agreed with Deidara. It was _too_ quiet, but...Yuka swallowed her nerves and spoke. "When are we expected to arrive, Sasori-_san_?" She would have said 'lovely weather, hm?' but that screamed 'old lady' in her head.

"In one or two days." Sasori answered. It's not like they would be late... If anything they would arrive a bit earlier, because the mission had been taken care of a lot faster than expected. Hiruko's permanent glaring face moved to the side so one of the eyes could spot Deidara. "The more you talk, the quicker you get caught brat." He told him. That's what he always said, even though it wasn't necessarily true. Their conversations usually led to arguments, that led to him almost poisoning the blonde on several occasions. And now with two more people, he wasn't sure if he had enough patience.  
... Which wasn't really his fault. His parents kept him waiting that _one_ time when he was a child and never came. It was enough to set off that part of his personality.

"And you expect any low-level to just ambush you and stab you in the back as easily as catching a fish?" Miya knew that was going too far. But she didn't fully agree with his statement. They could talk a little bit, no? She respected he might prefer silence, but it's not like once they opened their mouths they couldn't shut up. "It's not like we plan on throwing a party in the middle of a forest. The least you could do is give us a bit of liberty."

Sasori sighed in irritation. For any reasonable person, she might just have a point, but not for him. Not that he wasn't a reasonable person but the truth is... He really wasn't. "You better teach her to stay silent. I'm sure you don't want her to die any faster." He told his partner, letting a silence rest over them until he muttered something about letting them talk, but not much.

Deidara glared at the back of Hiruko's head. He shoved his hand back into his pocket. he grunted loudly and turned to Miya. "I'm not letting you die. _Period._ Un."

Yuka nodded slowly, ignoring what Sasori said to Deidara. "Are you...going to tell me what's in store for me?" Ignoring her worry didn't keep it from eating at her.

"That's nice to know." Miya stated matter-of-factly, trying to ignore the scorpion-like creature in front of her. "Except right now I'm more worried as to _why_ I came along in the first place. Care to explain?""


	11. Part Onze

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Onze

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

"Hmm?" The puppet's head didn't move to look at her, but from the inside, Sasori's did. "Probably a mission. Perhaps we'll have to make things more difficult first, though... Maybe I'll have to use a poison that could make you weaker but not necessarily kill you, just to see if you complete said mission or give up. But I can't see anything worse happening. What did you expect? Having one of our members sacrifice you to Jashin?"

Yuka didn't know if she should sigh with relief or not. She wouldn't die. "I don't know...I think I can handle it." She paused. "What's Jashin, Sasori-san?' She hoped that wasn't a stupid question, but she honestly had never heard of 'Jashin'.

Deidara shrugged. "I wanted you to come with me." He wasn't going to say anything about Sasori bringing a 'friend' and it wouldn't be fair if he didn't bring one. "We no longer have a medic nin, and we can help you gain what you want by helping us...so it works out, un."

Sasori chuckled at her question. "Jashin is a religion who worships a figure with that same name. For people of that religion, anything less than complete destruction is a sin. One of our members, Hidan, is part of that religion. He prays before his fights, either to achieve a killing or for forgiveness if he's not allowed to murder his opponents. After the fights he performs one of his rituals." He explained as if he'd done this numerous times before. "To be honest, I hadn't heard of Jashin until he joined us."

"... What if I didn't want to go, Deidara-san?" Miya asked. "What if I want to go back to Konoha?" It was a lie. The more time she spent away from it, the least she wanted to go back. But she knew better than to say that just now, right? "And how can you be so sure you know what I want?"

Deidara frowned. He hadn't thought of that. Really, had he even thought at all. "...Sorry." He said, barely audible. "I wasn't thinking, un." He couldn't bring himself to say anymore than that. Not only did he feel bad, he'd be losing face.

Yuka nodded slowly. "That's...interesting. Perhaps he created it himself?"

"N-no... I didn't mean it that way, sorry." Miya didn't want him to feel bad because of that. She had just asked because, well... Because. She didn't mean he was i _wrong /i _, the things she said were just possibilities.

"I wouldn't doubt it, but Leader explained us about his religion once, so there must be at least a couple more followers." Sasori said. Really, Hidan could have just made it up, being immortal and all, but then again, how had he become immortal in the first place? Not that it bothered the puppet master; he wasn't planning on converting to Jashin.

Deidara smiled slightly. "Okay, un." He kept walking, trying to find something to saw. He noticed Danna was talking, so why not he? He couldn't think of anything of importance now, so he pulled his hand out of his pocket. The wad of clay that his hand's mouth had been chewing, came out like a giant bird.

Yuka nodded. How could anyone follow such a religion? It seemed so morbid and stuff...She realized she really didn't know anything about Sasori and Deidara's 'organization'. She glanced at Hiruko as she talked. It was so weird that Sasori was _within_ that, but she tossed that thought aside. "Your group...what's it about?"

Sasori had to hold a laugh at Yuka's next question. "You don't know who we are?" He asked, his tone showing a hint of amusement. Didn't she recognize the red clouds? "I thought it would be... Obvious, by now. We may not be known by _all_ shinobi, but we're certainly known among the strongest."

Miya decided to just shut up for the time being. She didn't have much to say in the first place and she didn't want to regret saying the wrong things at the wrong time. She just kind of kept walking with her arms crossed - and keeping a distance from the scorpion-like puppet. She looked at Deidara after a moment. "Wow..." She whispered in surprise when she saw the bird.

_The strongest?_ That was certainly flattering. "I know I've heard of..." Red clouds, red clouds...it finally hit her. "...Akatsuki...What I mean to ask...what is the _purpose_?"

Deidara grinned and hopped on his beloved bird. The bird rose several yards up above the ground, before accelerating straight into the sky. He circled the group and came back down to where his bird was a little above eyelevel with everyone else. "Do you want to get on, Miya?"

"Hm... We can't tell you our purposes, can we?" Sasori asked. Akatsuki worked in secrecy; whatever everyone else knew wasn't half of what they had planned. It was almost like someone spoiling a part of a story for everyone else: they'd never know everything until they read or heard it themselves.  
In this case, no one would know the Akatsuki's plans until they were in absolute control.  
"You'll get your answers gradually."

"Uh... I guess." Miya wasn't that fond of flying but she figured it wasn't like he'd let her fall off. Besides, it was better than having to stand looking at Hiruko.

Yuka nodded, knowing that was the best answer she'd get. "Okay." She trekked on, with each step she took, the thicker the grass and vines were. A while back, it had looked like a road. If there was a road, it had clearly been overtaken by the vegetation. A thorn vine ripped a thin cut into her leg as she walked through. It stung, but she ignored it. After all, a little cut was much better than being stabbed by kunai.

Deidara reached down and lifted Miya up into the bird. Once she was safely up, he sat down on his bird and looked at Miya. "You aren't scared of heights or anything are you?

It was one of these times that Sasori liked traveling inside Hiruko. Even though he was very well aware that he was sitting where once had been a large man's entrails, it was much more comfortable than walking through the vegetation and risk getting hurt, if not on a plant, then on some weapon left behind by shinobi that had once stepped the ground they were walking through now - not that he would get hurt, but it's how his mind worked.  
"You might want to sit on Hiruko's back. The plants here aren't nearly as bad as a few feet away." He stated loudly. Hiruko wasn't as simple as his other puppets; it was made to hold a lot of weight and many different temperatures and environments without breaking. Since Sasori doubted Yuka was at all heavy and _knew_ the plants weren't strong enough to break through the 'shell', he thought it was alright if she sat. Besides, it seemed like the brat was flying for now.

Miya didn't stand up. It made her feel like she'd just trip and fall down - not that she'd hadn't ever fallen from any sort of height but just not from high up in the air. "No, not heights... I've just never actually _flown_ before, so I'm kind of scared of falling. I guess."

"Okay," Yuka said as she climbed onto Hiruko's back and sitting down. It seemed really weird to be sitting on Hiruko...at the same time, she was sitting on Sasori. It was the first time she had really felt self-conscience, which said a lot. When she had teammates, they were all guys.  
But sitting on Hiruko wasn't as bad as getting attacked by evil plants and who knew what else.

"I won't let you fall," Deidara assured her, as the bird ascended into the sky. He gazed across the horizon, he could see miles and miles ahead...but it was all trees...green trees, forming a large green blanket over the canopies.

Sasori didn't seem to even notice when Yuka climbed onto his puppet's back. Not being a generally talkative person - and far from ever being one -, the redhead didn't say anything and kept moving through the grown plants. If Yuka wanted to ask anything or just say anything at all, then he'd most likely reply, but for the time being he remained silent.

Miya smiled slightly, both because of what he said and because of the view. She sort of sat in silence for a while, looking as far as her eyes would allow her. Thinking.  
She remembered sitting high above trees and roofs with her two friends and occasionally, the woman that had been their sensei. She remembered how that same woman now had another team to teach and how she had felt sad for not being able to keep in touch. She remembered how one of her best friends had left because of the Sannin, Orochimaru... And how the other one died and she couldn't do anything to save him.  
And what was supposed to be a trip to rid her of her self-hate for not being able to help any of them had now proved to be a one-way door. Apparently each of them had really gone their own way.  
Miya nearly cried at that. But she couldn't do that, not now; a shinobi couldn't show emotion.

Yuka got out her knitting and began working on her sock. She was sure that she and Sasori would have gotten even weirder looks now that when they were in the village. Here she was, in full ninja attire, knitting on top of a giant moving scorpion. "So...Sasori-san? Why do you use this puppet? Is there a reason aside from the extra protection?"

Deidara glanced at her. "Are you okay?" He didn't wait for her to answer. Instead, he had his bird dive down quickly, like a roller coaster does after that awkward stillness at the top of the ride. He wore an amused expression that was similar to a child's. To keep Miya from thinking she would fall off [of course she wouldn't, he absentmindedly grabbed her wrist.

"Hmm?" Sasori didn't ever receive this question so often. He remained silent for a minute or two before he answered her question; "I like to... Not be seen." He said. For a moment his tone _almost_ sounded hesitant; it was the only thing he could think of as an answer, but he didn't want to admit it, say it out loud the way he had just done.  
Sasori didn't people to see what he looked like most of the time, especially when he was traveling... He wasn't as worried about being stabbed in the chest as he was about revealing himself to the world. So maybe Hiruko was like a refuge.

Miya didn't have the time to answer before she felt herself gasping at the sudden movement of the clay bird. She felt her heart beating fast, too fast, but it seemed to calm down a _little_ when she felt his hand around her wrist. However, it didn't keep the look of utter shock off her face.

"I see..." Yuka understood that. Aside from not wanting to be seen for the sake of it, it helped keep ones identity a secret...it gave you the upper hand over an opponent. It was ingenious. While she marveled over this, an alarming thought popped in her mind. "I'm not sitting on your head, am I?" Whether Hiruko was there or not, it was a weird thought to have...

Deidara glanced back at Miya. "Are you okay?" The bird ascended quickly back to its original elevation above the treetops. He moved a hand through his hair, vainly trying to smooth his windblown hair. It didn't bother him, it was more of a habit.

Sasori chuckled, though it came out as a more sinister laugh because of the puppet. Now _that_ was definitely the first time someone had asked him that. It almost made him forget how easily amused he seemed to have been these past few days. "Technically no; you're sitting on Hiruko's back. However, you may or may not be depending on how close you are to his head."

Miya took a deep breath; her heart was still beating like mad for at least a minute before she looked at him in the eyes. They were slightly pink, but that was from the whole thinking thing. "Well yeah, but that was _scary_, Deidara-san!" She exclaimed.

"I see." Yuka said, unable for some reason to keep a straight face. She got on her hands and knees and tilted her head over the edge, her eyes staring at Hiruko's. "You can see out of your eyes, right?" She couldn't figure out why she was in such an odd mood. Maybe it was all the coffee she had that morning _finally_ kicking in.

He grinned, his adrenaline was pumping slightly. "If I did that again," he said mischievously, referring to the bird's erratic flying. "Would you hold onto me?" He was glad Danna didn't hear him. He might get jealous or something.

Sasori frowned. "I can see through Hiruko's eyes..." He answered slowly. Somehow he couldn't bring himself to yell at the girl the same way he would at Deidara, or Tobi. "... Why are you in the way? Do you want me to hit a tree?"  
He almost sounded like an _innocent child_ when he asked that. Damned confusion.

"_What_?" If Miya didn't have enough feelings mixed up in an imaginary bottle, he just had to throw in shock with that question. _Of course_ she would, but she didn't want to say it... Which brought her to cursing herself after she realised she had unconsciously nodded when thinking of the answer. "Don't tell me you're going to do that again!"

"I don't know...I'm quite tempted to." Deidara said slowly, grinning widely. He debated on whether or not to do it. He decided to do it, and the bird dived down, this time, much deeper than before.

"Sorry," Yuka said almost childishly. She sat back on Hiruko's back and looked up at the sky, seeing Deidara's bird dive down. "Wow..." She couldn't take her eyes off the bird for some reason. Maybe it was that she had never flown before. She'd jumped off cliffs and stuff, sure, but this was different.

"N-no!" Miya's eyes widened as she felt the bird dive once again. This time it felt as if she'd really fall off if she just sat there staring down; it didn't take her more than a few seconds to wrap her arms around the blonde, holding onto for dear life.

"Hmm?" Hiruko's head moved upwards so Sasori could see clearly. "Ah, Deidara. He does spend part of his time flying... Sometimes he does some rather... Insane stunts." It's not that it wasn't amusing to watch. Sasori actually liked it, but that didn't make it less crazy when it looked like his partner was going to have a painful encounter with earth, only to defy gravity once again. Like it was as simple as throwing a kunai.  
"I still worry someday he might kill himself during one of those..."


	12. Part Douze

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Douze

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Deidara laughed as the bird did a loop-de-loop in the sky. Seconds later, the bird was at its normal elevation, flying lazily. He patted Miya's head. "Ah, come one, you know that was fun."

Yuka gasped. Not at Deidara's stunt, but Sasori's. "_Worry?_ ..That means you _care_ about him..." She paused for a second, coming up with the most outrageous thing she could muster. "Are you two, like, _lovers_?"

Sasori choked when Yuka asked that. He _choked_. On _thin air_. He, Akasuna no Sasori, having a blonde brat for a lover? _Never_! "Of course not!" He snapped, the mere thought making him want to pick his eyes out with a spoon. "He's my partner and to any further extent a _friend_."  
Wait. _Friend_? When had he ever said that Deidara was his friend before this very moment?

"No it wasn't!" Miya was still clinging like a bloody limpet to his cloak, afraid that he'd do one of those stunts as soon as she let go of him. "What are you trying to do, cause me a heart attack?"

Deidara cocked his head slightly, grinning. "Nah, I just wanted you to cling onto me." He said humorously. At the same time...he meant it, too. "So...you don't want me to do it again? Are you sure? Positive? Un?"

Yuka smiled. "I see." She paused. "Are you just 'friends' or 'casual friends' or 'friends you only talk to when you feel like it' or 'best friends' or 'best friends who have sleep overs and cry over chick flicks'?" She grabbed her discarded knitting and grinned to herself foolishly. That very question was proof of her insatiable boredom mixed with her need to know random things.

Sasori was starting to wonder how he hadn't lost his temper completely with this kind of question. Maybe it was the fact that it was the first time anyone had dared asking him that kind of thing and without even sounding the least hesitant about it. He sighed loudly; this one wasn't difficult to answer. "The third one." He answered simply; it was true, he wouldn't speak to Deidara - or anyone else for that matter - unless he really had to.

Miya let go of him quickly; her mind hadn't processed the action _completely _ until he had said what she hoped was really just a joke. "Yea, I'm sure. I don't."

Deidara sighed as his bird flew lazily, keeping at Hiruko's slow pace. He looked at the ground dully. "You better find a way to entertain me, un. This is very boring." He glanced back at her expectantly.

Yuka finished the knitting on the sock and began working on the second. "And, dear Sir, how would you summarize our relationship months from now?" She was just messing with him now. The obvious answer--if everything went correctly--was similar to that of employer-employee.

"Why obviously you'll be my subordinate." Sasori answered, rolling his eyes. "Unless you want most of your missions to be handed to you by other members such as Uchiha Itachi who'd most likely torture you if you didn't complete the mission according to _his_ standards or Kakuzu who probably would pay you less than an average _tip_ per mission... Or Zetsu who could consider eating you alive." Alright, he knew he wasn't being funny and he wasn't trying to, either. He wasn't generally a funny person... Explaining the lack of inner jokes between friends. Or rather, partners.

"Excuse me?" Miya frowned at that. "I don't _have_ to entertain you, you know?" She looked down, her finger tracing imaginary lines on the back of the bird. "When I was a kid and used to be bored during missions with the rest of my team... My sensei made this game up where we just ask each other questions. My friends were generally too quiet, so Aiko-sensei and I would just ask each other questions from time to time. Sometimes it was fun, sometimes it was awkward... Sometimes we got angry, yeah, but we knew that it was our fault for asking things in the first place." She sighed. "It's better than nothing, I guess... You can start."

"Oh, you're definitely the best choice. If anything you'd poison me and turn me into a Muppet...puppet, I mean." She wasn't being sarcastic on purpose, rather, she found this quite amusing.

Deidara raised an eyebrow. "Can I ask you a question about _anything_?" Not only was that an important question, but it counted as a question, which meant he didn't have to think of a question to start off.

"Careful with what you say." Sasori warned. He disliked when his puppets were made fun of and "Muppet" wasn't exactly a compliment. "And don't think I'd be less cruel that anyone else. Except their ways of... Punishments, if you'd call them that, are quite different and don't actually leave space for forgiveness. At least you'd get to apologize before the poison killed you. Can't exactly say the same if you're being digested in the stomach of a giant Venus flytrap."

"Um..." Miya bit her lip. It's not that it was a difficult question, she was just pondering her choices. "... Yeah, I guess. Can _I_ do the same?"

Yuka nodded. "Unless I decide to be stubborn. I then wouldn't say a word and possibly laugh at you." She paused. "Anyway, I like Muppets." She had watched the Muppets on TV as a child...It was a habit, really. Milk, cookies, and the Muppets. She had adored Animal...

"Can birds fly?" That was an obvious 'yes' in Deidara's mind. Everyone knew birds could fly, after all.

"They're not the same as _my _puppets." Sasori rolled his eyes. It's not that he didn't like the Muppets when he was little, but he left behind most of the things that made him last when his grandmother started teaching him about puppets and he spent time making his own. "And if you did laugh at me, depending on my mood you might just die faster... Or much slower and more painfully."

"Uh, no." Miya answered bluntly. "Chickens can't fly. But almost every other bird can, I suppose." She paused, thinking of her own question. "Have you ever named them?" She asked, pointing to his hands; she meant the mouths.

"I'm already dying painfully slow," Yuka said. "It's called life." Some bleeding hearts would say that love was the slowest, most painful form of death. Or worse, unrequited love. Yuka personally couldn't vouch for that. The only people she had ever loved were her parents...and Chiyo-baasama in way, maybe...but then, Yuka didn't even know what 'love' truly was.

Deidara looked at his hands. "Nah, I have too many of them and I'm uncreative when it comes to naming things. I had a dog named Dog when I was little," he added.

"Ah yes. I _forgot_ that's what happens to most humans." Sasori shook his head, although the gesture couldn't actually be seen. "But you know very well there would be a difference between the two, even if you were the saddest person walking this earth. Which, I'm sure, you're not."

Too many? Not counting the mouth on his face she only saw two others...And that's exactly where Miya stopped her train of thoughts. She'd rather thing of the dog named 'Dog' then where he had any other mouths. "Ah... Well, um, it's your turn."

"Oh, how lucky you are to be able to forget that," Yuka said slightly bitterly. Quickly, she changed the subject, asking a more obnoxious question than she had earlier. "Have you ever been in _lovveee_?" She stressed the word 'love' like a little school girl.

Deidara looked straight ahead as he thought of a question. "If you could achieve only one goal or ambition, what would it be?" It wasn't the most creative question in the world...but it was the first that popped in his head, aside from vulgar ones that might cause Miya to push him off his bird.

Sasori scowled. He knew she didn't mean love for his parents or grandmother, or at least that's what it seemed by her tone and how she said that last word. "Of course not! Not that it's any of your business, girl."

Miya lowered her gaze back at the clay bird, her finger tracing more imaginary lines over the soft surface. "_Ashita genki ni naare._" She muttered. Those were the last words her teammate Kyo had said only months ago, his last words just before he died. "... I'd make that wish of his come true." She answered. "And what would _yours_ be?"

"Perhaps it's not," Yuka said. "But I think that I should know as much as I can about my boss...for my own safety and such..." She paused. "I also need to know what your tastes in women are so I don't have to worry about you coming onto me."

What did he want more than anything..? "I want Uchiha Itachi dead," he stated sourly. His tone quickly changed to that of curiosity. "Who is 'he'?"

"_Please_, I'm more professional than that." Sasori rolled his eyes. "But if you really must know, I like my women smart and not helpless... Or idiotic... Or pink-haired... And the list goes on."

Miya remembered Itachi; he was almost her age, after all. She knew Uchiha Sasuke wanted him dead, but why would he want the same thing? It wasn't his family he had slaughtered... She hoped. "Oh uhm... Kyo. He was my- well, he was the one I couldn't... Help when he was dying, on our last mission together. Deep wounds, vital organs..." She answered and looked at him. "What's between you and Itachi?"

Yuka leaned forward. "Really, Sasori-san, you haven't told me anything that assure my safety." She of course, was smart, not helpless...well, she could be idiotic...but that was beside the point...and her hair wasn't pink. She added jokingly, "Your description was so vague you could be describing me."

Deidara pursed his lips. "Itachi-san...basically...humiliated me." He had to change the subject quick, so he asked abruptly, "Is that why you are seeking further information on medicine?"

Sasori inwardly twitched at her last comment. It was just the way she said things and it didn't make him want to even yell at her... It was odd and, well, confusing. "Or anyone else..." He muttered under his breath. _What_ was he supposed to say exactly?

"Oh..." Miya didn't push the subject any further. Not that she had a chance to before he had already asked another question. "Well... Yeah. It is." She looked down again for what seemed like the millionth time now. "Are you... Going to kill me? I mean, if the whole 'needing a medic nin' thing doesn't turn out so bright for me."

Yuka leaned back on Hiruko. "That' good." She went back to knitting in silence...for the time being.

"Kill you? Of course not. If anything, we figured you could be a spy for us, since you hadn't completely severed your ties with Konaha..."

Sasori kept walking- well, making Hiruko walk in silence. It was obvious by now that he was the type of person who wouldn't start conversations without a reason to and even so, many of the times he'd push those reasons aside just so he wouldn't have to speak. He decided that if anyone wanted to say anything, then it would be Yuka, not him.

"Eh, sure if you want to know what's going on there in a year or two from now." Miya shook her head. She didn't pay much attention to the game they had been playing anymore. "I've been away for a few weeks, Deidara-san, don't expect me to want to go back there so soon... It just hurts to be there sometimes."

"We don't need you to go back, yet." Deidara couldn't remember whose turn it was to ask, so he asked the next question. "What do you know of Uzumaki Naruto?"

Yuka concentrated on her knitting. She needed new socks...the ones she was wearing were going thin. "What is it like not to feel?"

"Huh?" Miya frowned. Not a lot of people outside Konaha knew who he was; news traveled fast, yes, but not even the children born at around the same time and after Naruto's birth knew he was the vessel for the Kyuubi - unless he had told anyone himself. She only knew because she was a kid at the time and it was hard to forget when one's parents came back alive but drenched in blood. "He's the number one hyperactive ninja in Konaha. Likes ramen, he used to play some pranks... Teammates with Uchiha Sasuke and some pink-haired girl by the name of Haruno Sakura. Last time I saw him he was under training with Jiraya-sama. Why is it that you want to know?"

"Hmm?" Yet another question Sasori had been asked by many; he usually answered... Except for that one time Hidan asked 'Hey Pinocchio, how the fuck can you walk around and bump with random objects and not even feel? That sucks!', but that's because he had felt insulted. "Physically, you mean? It's odd because I _can_ feel in a way, but not the same way as any normal human would. Well, I can sense when anything touches me, obviously, but other than that it's like... Being permanently numbed. Emotionally, though, I _can_ feel."

Deidara knew that much. Itachi-san had been particularly aggravated by the fact he was with Jiraiya... "I just know someone who happens to be...very interested in him." More like, for the kyuubi. It worked out pretty well that they couldn't get the kyuubi now, since Leader-sama said that the other bijuu needed to be sealed first.

Yuka nodded. That was interesting...not to feel physical pain..."Perhaps I am weird, but I would rather feel physical pain opposed to emotional."

"Ah. Yeah well... I think he's more interested in becoming Hokage now." Miya didn't know what to say. She was starting to get that awkward feeling that she had gotten herself in deeper business than she'd handle. But somehow, it made sense... She still couldn't remember the meaning of red clouds.

"That doesn't make you weird at all." Sasori shook his head and made Hiruko repeat the movement. "Blocking out emotions was a failed experiment when I became who I now am... I decided not to change that though."

"Such a shame," Deidara said. The brat wouldn't become Hokage. If he managed to...he wouldn't hold the title for long. He glanced back at her. "Are you okay?"


	13. Part Treize

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Treize

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

"Why?" Yuka asked. If it was a 'failed experiment'. why not try to fix it?

"Yeah, yeah I was just thinking." Miya smiled slightly and looked up at the sky, but only momentarily. "But it's nothing important. I'm just like that sometimes."

"I've learned to repress my emotions ever since I was a kid." Sasori answered; even since his parents had died, he hadn't been the same. "But I suppose it's mainly because... Without them, eternal life wouldn't have a point. I'd move, hear, speak and more... But it would be like I wasn't there, experiencing it all for myself and learn my own reactions." Although she couldn't see it, one of his hands was rested over his chest, sensing his heart's soft beat.

"Okay," Deidara said absentmindedly. His attention was focused on the setting sun. He swooped the bird down close to Hiruko. "Danna, we should probably find a place to camp, un. There's a river up ahead...we should camp there so we can get fish, un." 'We' of course referred to those who actually ate. Deidara couldn't really help it...he was nearly always hungry.

Yuka nodded, and smiled softly. Not that Sasori could see that. The sentimental part of her found that touching...that was the part of her she usually kept locked away, but for some reason, refused to remain dormant today. She saw Deidara swoop down in time to duck her head instead of getting it knocked off her shoulders.

"Hi..." Miya smiled at Yuka, leaning over the bird the slightest bit - she was still afraid to fall over, but much less now than before, for some odd reason.

Sasori kept moving silently for about a minute or so; he was always like this, taking his time to answer things; he didn't like having to go back on his own word for whatever reason. "... I suppose you're right." He didn't look up at him, instead paying more attention on where his puppet stepped. "Once we get there we can rest... And leave early in the morning. we can't afford to spend _too_ much time in one spot."

Yuka looked up at Miya, who was just a little bit above her head. "Well, hello, fancy meeting you here." She looked ahead and saw they were coming to a clearing right on the water. Yay! This was great. She could catch fish, cook rice, bathe, and even have coffee in the morning since the river was right there...that is, if the water wasn't too contaminated.

Deidara flew ahead of Sasori and landed in the clearing. Well, he jumped _off_ the bird before it landed. He helped Miya off then his hand gobbled the bird up. He stretched exaggeratedly and grabbed out his canteen and filled it with fresh water.

Sasori had to move at a slower pace because of Hiruko, but soon got there with Yuka. Although still inside the puppet, he examined the surroundings as well as he could. He doubted there was any sort of population living anywhere close to the area, which meant they'd have to be extra careful for any criminal wannabes that might try to attack them. "If you could be as kind as to get off so I can do the same."

"Why this is quite... Awkward." Miya muttered, referring to the odd feeling of having her feet on the ground again after having been sitting on the clay bird. She noticed Sasori and Yuka arriving only moments later and leaned against a tree. She wasn't going to give orders unless any of them suddenly fell over suffering from some illness, so she had better wait to see what she was told.

Yuka jumped off Hiruko and set her things by a tree. She began gathering sticks for a campfire so she could cook herself [and anyone else if she felt nice enough some food. She knew that cooking would bring unwanted guests, but she figured that it would be better to go ahead and cook now then wait for it to be dark where the fire would attract people.

Deidara was starving. [So what if he had just eaten hours earlier? He glanced over at Miya. "Do you like fish?" Tiny clay spiders were jumping out of his hand into the river. He didn't wait for any answer. Softly saying _katsu_, the spiders exploded. Water splashed up from the river, soaking him, but at the same time, so did several large salmon, which littered the river bank. "Sweet! ..un."

Sasori got off Hiruko and took out a scroll to with the puppet disappeared with a cloud of smoke. He decided to stay away from the water and Deidara's demonstrations of "Art" and instead kneeled where he deemed was far away enough from tree or bushes and started preparing where they could make the campfire – he _did_ know better than to start an unprepared fire and have half of a forest burning down.

Miya walked over _after_ he made the spiders explode; only her feet and shoes were soaked, but that didn't bother her. She started picking up the fish, some still moving and trying to jump back into the water. "I'm not picky with food unless we're talking about squids or... Anything that resembles squids." She seriously didn't like squids. "And really.. Are you trying to catch a cold?" She asked, although the smile proved she wasn't angry at all.

Yuka got out a metal can from her back that was filled with rice. She walked over and got some water from the river and went back to the campfire in making. When Sasori finished putting all the sticks together and stuff, she lit it using a match to light a piece of paper soaking in oil. She set the can in the fire at a place where it would still cook and she could get it out when ready. It would have been better to have it elevated, but she didn't have anything to do it.

"No," Deidara said. "I'm trying to get my _dinner._" He picked up the dying fish, some were even still flipping about. There were five of them. He rinsed the sand off the fish and walked over to the campfire and dropped them by Yuka. "You. Cook these. Now. Un."

_"Excuse me?" _Yuka looked at him fiercely. "You need to repeat that. I don't understand Neanderthal."

When Yuka lit the fire, Sasori stepped back and sat down a few feet away from the fire. He didn't need to eat, thus didn't need to help cooking and could stay on guard for the time being. However, not being at all far away from them, he could clearly heard Deidara. "Have some manners, brat!" He growled.

Miya shook her head and brought along what little fish she had gotten the chance to catch from the ground. She was going to set them down with the rest of the dieing creatures, but Deidara's "order" - if it could be called that much - didn't sink in so well. The brunette stepped on his foot. "No one here's your servant. If you want to cook them, do it yourself." She said and sat down. _She_ would help Yuka out.

Deidara's jaw dropped, his expression showing shock of 'betrayal'. "I thought we were friends, Miya." He couldn't believe that she was siding with Yuka and Danna...he wasn't completely serious about what he had said. "I'm a horrible cook..."

Yuka poked the fire with a stick. Her rice was boiling. Had Deidara not been such a, you know, she would have helped. "...There's this old proverb we kunoichi are taught from a young age, Deidara-san..." Yuka said, not looking up. "Chicks before dicks." She wasn't really taught that, it was just a twist off the common 'bros before hoes' phrase that she thought fit the moment.

Miya found it very hard to not laugh at what Yuka said. No one actually taught her that but even though it was funny, it was just so true. She looked up at him trying to sound somewhat serious. "Well _learn_. Like we did."

Sasori turned and sat staring at them. Maybe, just maybe, bringing those two girls along would be helpful. He might learn with them the manners he wouldn't learn with anyone in the Akatsuki... Except maybe Konan, but he wasn't even sure how much time she had bothered to spend with any other member except for Leader.

Deidara looked at his feet sheepishly. He had been owned and he knew it. It was a good thing the only other Akatsuki there was Danna. He wouldn't go telling the others...hopefully. "Teach me?"

"Did you hear something, Miya?" Yuka said, ignoring Deidara. Maybe he'd get a hint.

"Will you _please_ teach me?" Deidara asked, a little annoyed, but he tried to suppress it.

"Sure." Yuka said cheerfully. "Have a seat."

Oh this was great; Sasori smirked. He'd _love_ to see each and every of their co-workers' faces when he told them about this _lovely_ scene as soon as they were together. He almost felt bad for all the things Deidara would hear.

"That's more like it." Miya smiled kindly, almost as if she hadn't scolded him moments before. "Now, pay attention to what we say."

Deidara sat down beside Yuka, holding a fish. "What do I do, Yuka?"

Yuka couldn't resist from smiling wickedly and replying. "Well, first Deidara, that is no proper way to address your instructor."

Deidara glared at her. "Fine. What do I do first, _Yuka-sensei_?"

Yuka grabbed a fish and demonstrated. "Chop the head off so it doesn't stare at you." She chopped the head off with the blade of a knife. "Then de-scale it." She instructed, de-scaling the fish. Deidara followed suit.

Miya laughed at the whole scene. She was sitting next to them, doing the same thing Yuka was explaining, but not as slowly - she wasn't the one learning or teaching, after all. She looked up at Sasori for a moment and noticed him standing up, but quickly went back to paying attention to the fish she was preparing.

Sasori, as Miya had noticed, did stand up from where he was sitting and sat closer to them, on the opposite side of the small fire. He was looking at the with that usual bored expression, but he seemed amused at the same time. "I'm sure that after this, Konan will be happy if you ever offer to help her cook, brat."

Deidara grunted at that. _Help Konan cook?_ He'd never hear the end of it! He'd be as respected as Tobi--or worse. _Damn fish_, he cursed to himself as he took the scales off.

Yuka nudged Deidara encouragingly. "You did good, Deidara! Now we stick them over the fire like this," She demonstrated, putting the fish on a stick and roasting it over the fire. "Easy, huh?" She patted his cheek slightly motherly. "You just wait until we find a place with a decent kitchen. We'll bake cookies!"

Sasori just smirked as he watched his partner's reactions. This was just _too much fun_ to miss out on... And he was sure the others would believe him; after all, when did Akasuna no Sasori ever consider something 'fun'? "I'd love to see you bake some cookies." He said in an amused tone.

Miya laughed at Yuka's last comment and grinned when she looked at Deidara. "Deidara-_kun_, you're a fast learner. Remind me to get you a present of your choice if we ever go to a town."

Deidara looked up at his Danna, thoroughly surprised. "Really?" He knew it was meant to be insulting, but Danna _never_ took interest in anything he did. He was so consumed in his astonishment that he failed to pay attention to the fire. A rogue flame flared up, catching his sleeve on fire.

"Deidara...you're on fire," Yuka said, pointing to his sleeve as she took the rice out of the fire


	14. Part Quatorze

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Quatorze

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

"What?" Deidara flipped out, like most new cooks do. Instead of doing the reasonable thing [like going to the river he flailed his arm hysterically and reached for a liquid-filled bottle that was nestled on Yuka's side.

"Deidara...that's not water--" Yuka said, frowning as Deidara poured it on his sleeve, causing it to burst into bigger flames. "...It's _rum."_

Sasori rolled his eyes when he asked at, only to look slightly wide-eyed when the blonde didn't notice his sleeve was on fire.  
"Deidara..." He said slowly when the blonde forgot the most obvious way to put out the fire and instead reached out for a bottle... Which, much to his bad luck, wasn't water.  
In a split-second he had attached chakra strings to his partner, violently pushing him towards the river.

"Oh... Kami-sama..." Miya whispered at the burning sleeve. "Dei-" She didn't quite get to finish the sentance before Sasori reacted. "-dara..."

The water seemed to rush at Deidara, engulfing him before he realized what was going on. He shivered violently. The water seemed to have gotten ten degrees cooler compared to when he had 'caught' the fish. He looked at his sleeve. It was burned up to half way to his elbow. Unfortunately, so was his arm, starting from his wrist, mostly on the top of his arm from where the rum got on him.

Yuka picked up the now discarded bottle of rum. She muttered to herself irritably. "Brand new bottle, too..." She sighed. It wasn't like she had paid for it or anything. She had stolen it from the tavern. She glanced back towards the river. then looked to Miya. "You know, if he doesn't know how to put out a fire, he probably doesn't know how to treat burns."

"Sorry about that, but you'd end up burning to death if you just stood there." Sasori said loud enough for Deidara to hear. He didn't get up, however, instead paying attention to the fish the other three would eat so it wouldn't burn as well.

Miya stood up. "No, he probably doesn't... And he's going to catch a cold if he just stays there." She quickly walked over to him and held out her hand. "You're freezing." She frowned. "Come on, lets get those burns cared for."

Yuka looked up at Sasori, wide-eyed, as she held her fish and the empty bottle. "You don't happen to have any rum, do you?" Her meal was ruined unless she could have rum with her fish. Water just wouldn't cut it. [Who knew a kunoichi other than Tsunade would be an alcoholic?

Deidara took Miya's hand gingerly. He avoided looking at his nasty burn and instead focused on his crying hands. "You can fix it..." It was not a question, but a statement. A hope, one could say. What would he do if his arm never healed properly? There was the chance he could never use it again...

"Hmm? Why would I have any rum?" Sasori asked. He didn't actually need to eat or drink, so why in the name of Jashin's pants would he walk around with something he wouldn't _need_?

Miya couldn't help but notice his expression... It almost made her feel bad. "Of course I can." She reassured him. "I've dealt with worse."  
Once they were back with the others, she carefully took his arm and slowly placed a hand with that glowing green chakra on the worst area. "This might... Hurt. But I learned a quicker and more efficient way to treat certain wounds instead of the usual ways."

Yuka groaned. "I don't _know._" There wasn't any rum, she had to get over that. Stubbornly, she took a bite out of her fish and rice. She saw that Miya was busy with Deidara, and Sasori was watching the fish, so she grabbed her back, got up, and headed to the river. She walked several yards down the riverbank until she felt is was 'safe'...then took a bath.

Deidara didn't feel any pain. He was mesmerized by the green light and his skin healing as the chakra hit his skin. "...Thanks Miya..."

Sasori frowned. Where was Yuka going all of a sudden?  
For a moment he thought of standing up and check where she was going, but decided against it... At least for the next few minutes. If she was away for too long, he'd go after her to make sure this hadn't all been just an elaborate plan to get them to share information.

"No problem. " Miya smiled. She seemed to be getting sleepier by the second, but that was because she was using up a large amount of chakra to heal his arm and the only good meal she had that day was the ramen; meaning she wasn't as full of energy as usual.

Deidara was delighted. He looked as his arm, it was as good as new. "I could totally kiss you right now." He said as he grabbed his fish and began to eat.

Yuka relaxed in the cool water...well, as much as she could relax. She couldn't let herself go down stream and she had to keep a look out for any peeping toms…or worse, snakes. Snakes. The thought of them got her paranoid. Almost immediately after thinking of them, she hurried up her bathing so she could get out.

"Just... Eat. And be careful with your arm now." Miya said, trying to hide the blush that had appeared on her face by nearing the fire and slowly taking the fish she had cooked to start eating it. It was really good, but it didn't immediately compensate the lack of energy.

Sasori frowned at Deidara, but shrugged it off. Instead of just sitting there staring at the fire, he stood up and walked over to a tree that he 'climbed' like an shinobi would. Which basically meant he just walked like he was walking up a street and then sat down on a branch. He was mostly looking at the sky, but also paying attention to when Yuka would come back.

Deidara inhaled his fish within seconds, and with his new 'skills' he cooked himself another one. He smiled at Miya and said with his mouth stuffed. "Thanks again, Miya. I owe you."

Yuka was beyond paranoid now. At least she could see somewhat with the moonlight. she was just about done when something bit her. She uncontrollably let out a shriek and grabbed what bit her. She didn't bother seeing what it was quite yet; she took it to the river bank and immediately killed it with one of her kunai. Afterwards, she looked down at what she had killed. "...A fish."

Miya didn't take long to finish her own fish, but didn't eat anymore after that one; she didn't want to have a stomach ache from eating too much. "It's alright... Hey, are you worried you might catch a cold?"

Sasori had been with his eyes closed, but immediately opened them when he thought he heard a voice. He jumped down from his spot and disappeared between the trees without a word. He kept walking, his pace quickening until he stopped, feet away from a person, but not close enough to notice exactly who it was - at least not at night, like right now. "Is everything alright?" He asked.

"A cold?" Deidara asked. "Honestly, I've never had a cold before...I would like to get out of these wet clothes..." He rummaged through his bag, finding only a pair of pants. "I'll be back in a second." He went into the woods and quickly changed and returned.

Yuka looked up wide-eyed. "Ohmigawd!" She threw the dead fish at Sasori in impulse. She had been in such a frenzy she didn't hear him approach. She groped the ground for something to cover herself. Finding her towel, she wrapped it around herself. "I...I'm fine, thank you."

"'Kay." Miya nodded and proceeded to lay down on the grass, staring up at the stars. There wasn't anything else she could do until she finally fell asleep and she didn't want to eat anymore. "Welcome back." She muttered absentmindedly upon Deidara's return.

_What. The. Fuck._ The fish hit Sasori in the face, in what many would call a comical manner. However, Sasori just blinked as the creature finally fell in front of his feet. "Yuka...? I thought that could be you." He only then seemed to realize what had happened _exactly_. "... This was _not_ my intention, I swear."

Yuka shook her finger at him violently, although it was barely visible in the dark. "Uh-huh. _Sure._ I'll tell you what, _Sasori_, the last person who did this to me _died_."

Deidara yawned. "You sleepy, Miya?" He sat several feet away in the grass, tired, but not ready to sleep. He wouldn't sleep, he decided, until Danna returned.

Sasori inwardly twitched for what seemed like the millionth time today. "First off, show some _respect_ for your elders. And second, I'm not a _pervert_, it's not my fault if I could hear you screaming because of a _fish_."

"Huh?" Miya looked over at him slowly, as if looking away from the sky was extremely difficult. "Yeah kind of, I guess. Aren't you?" She figured she was just tired because of the chakra she had used up, but there was no point in just answering and sat in a dull silence until one of them fell to the side exhausted, was there?

If Yuka had laser beams for eyes, they would have burned through Sasori's 'skull'. "It. Bit. My. Ass." She figured that it was a damn well good reason to scream.

"I am...I have to wait to wait for Danna to come back, un."

"..." Sasori just stared at her blankly for a minute or so.  
"So you've killed the culprit already. Don't go blaming _me_ just because I came to see what was wrong."

"Why?" Miya frowned. "It's not like he'll yell at you if you fall asleep, is it?

"Someone has to keep watch," Deidara said simply.

Yuka stepped closer now, less irritable. "Why did you do that?"

"Right. I forgot." Miya muttered, turning her gaze back up at the sky.

"Do what? Come and check on what was happening?" Sasori shrugged, looking much more like a teenager now than his personality would usually let him. "Call it a habit. I may be an S-ranked criminal, but I don't turn my back on my comrades unless I have a good reason t

"Ahhh...how sweet." Yuka said, walking back to her things. "Now if you'd excuse me I'd like to get dressed." She walked several yards away with her things, dressed, and headed back to camp, completely ready to sleep.

"You can go to sleep," Deidara yawned. "We have a long day tomorrow, un." He hoped Danna would get back soon. He was completely exhausted.

"Sweetness? Not really, but if that's how you put it..." Sasori shrugged and slowly made his way back. However, he took another path between the threes and ended up being the last one to get there.

"It's okay, I'll keep you company for a bit." Miya smiled; she really did look tired, which was unusual, or so most people said - the ones who knew her, anyway.  
... Unfortunately, she didn't get to keep her word. She only closed her eyes for a few seconds and ended up falling asleep.

"Wake up," Deidara said, standing over Miya. The sun was rising slowly over the horizon. They really had to get a move on or else Danna would flip out or something.

Yuka was still half asleep, curled up against a tree. She was too tired to get up quite yet, so she was simply staring in once direction vacantly.

"Huh... It's morning already?" Miya opened her eyes; she seemed a bit... Confused, you could say, but she was usually like that in the morning. She slowly sat up and looked at Deidara. "We're leaving now?" She asked, her tone much lower than usual, as if she had a cold - but that's how she always was in the morning.

Sasori was simply standing there, waiting for the other three to hurry. For now, he decided not to use Hiruko; maybe later that day, but he decided he needed to walk for a bit too - mostly to check up on his own body. "Hurry." He stated loudly.

"Yeah, already," Deidara said in a hushed tone. "We're a bit behind schedule...we don't have time to fix breakfast or anything." Deidara frowned and walked across the camp, making sure he had everything.

Yuka groaned and got to her feet slowly. _W__e don't have time to fix breakfast or anything._ Damn. That meant no coffee. She stretched lazily and groped her lower back, which was a bit sore. She must have slept on a root wrong or something.

"That's the least of my worries..." Miya muttered as she managed to get up. She got her things and checked for anything that might have fallen on the ground during the night; then, she headed over to the river bank, where she kneeled down and splashed some cold water on her face, just to try and stay awake. Then she quickly returned to where Sasori stood, waiting for them.

Now, Sasori was ready to leave - he had been all night, which he spent guarding the camp and fixing a puppet he might use in case they got attacked or something. Are we all _finally_ ready to leave?"

Yuka trekked over slowly, rubbing her eyes. She had never been a morning person, even as a child she had been very irritable until she had some time by herself to 'wake up'. "_Yes_," She said, seeing that everyone was waiting on her. "I swear though, if you ask that again I'll shove a stick up your ass."

Deidara's draw dropped. Who was _she_ to talk to Danna like that? He knew this could get pretty messy, especially with Danna already being impatient. "Uh...Danna, why don't you lead the way?"

Miya looked at them both wide-eyed. She didn't dare even speaking to Sasori most of the time out of fear he's peel off her skin and yet Yuka talked to him like he was some low rank ninja. "Y-yeah, you probably know the way better... "

Sasori cast Yuka a death glare. "One." He said coldly. "At the third I swear, you'll be walking-- no, _crawling_ with us until we reach the hideout, unable to express in how much excruciating pain you'll be in."  
And with that, he started walking in the direction they - the Akatsuki - had planned for this mission.


	15. Part Quinze

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Quinze

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Deidara could not help but smile. It wasn't because he thought it was funny, but because the situation was so...awkward. It was a compulsion, if you will, because he didn't know how to adapt to the current situation. Danna had given death threats hundreds of times, but no one had _ever_ told him that they would shove a stick up his ass. He didn't know if he should give kudos to Yuka for being so brave...or laugh at her for being so stupid.

Yuka looked to the ground. She suddenly felt five again. This time she wasn't in trouble for stealing cookies from the cookie jar...At the same time she didn't care that she had pissed Sasori off. That would be the grumpy part who didn't get to have coffee. She followed the others, last in the line. She figured for the time being that was the best place for her, unless someone wanted her elsewhere.

Miya glanced sideways at Deidara as she walked and frowned at his reaction. Why was he smiling? Did he find it so funny that the redhead had just threatened Yuka and most likely _would_ keep his word? "What's so fu--"

"Shut it." Sasori said only loud enough for them to hear. He sounded irritated now, which, with his temper, made a lot of sense. "I don't want to hear a word until we reach our destination."

Deidara's face became an emotionless mask. He really didn't mean to smile...but he couldn't very well indicate it at the moment. Danna was in a vicious mood. He focused his attention on walking and getting towards their destination, as there was nothing else to do.

Yuka wondered if she should apologize, but as Sasori said no talking, she stayed silent for the time being. It was so boring though. It was a shame she didn't know sign language. But then, she couldn't very well use it as the people around her had their backs to her.

Miya wanted no more than the earth to swallow her after Sasori snapped at them, but remained silent and tried to look as serious as possible. It's not like she had never walked in silence, anyway.

Sasori was lost in thought as they kept moving and time passed. For him it seemed to pass quickly, but it had been that way all his life- except maybe when he awaited his parents' return one last time. The many grey clouds gradually darkened the sky as the distance between them and the hideout shortened... It was Probably Pein, but he somehow doubted that possibility. Wasn't he supposed to return to the Rain after the mission he and his partner were going to finish some time ago?

Deidara noticed the change in the weather. Instead of associating it with their Leader, he associated it with having to be around Tobi and Itachi if he were unfortunate enough. He probably would be that unlucky, too. At least he didn't have to share a room with them...

Yuka looked up at the sky, slightly entertained by the change of scenery of the sky. She loved storms...but she didn't particularly enjoy traveling in them. She walked while staring at the clouds, which proved to be a bad idea...she tripped over a small root that protruded from the earth. Her fall was dramatic, loud, and klutzy. And would probably get her to 'two'...at this rate she would be dead by the end of the day.

Miya looked back at Yuka when she heard her fall and nearly broke that 'vow of silence' before she decided not to get Sasori any angrier; she hoped Yuka wouldn't mind. She turned around and held out her hand for her, not expecting the yelling that came next.

"What the hell!" Sasori turned around to look at what had happened. He knew it wasn't a shinobi trying to attack them - the unfortunate few that actually came this far were usually eaten by Zetsu or just killed by one of them - except maybe for Tobi, who only killed them when the plant man allowed and that one time he drove a shinobi to suicide... Though that had been in a completely different situation. "Can't you pay attention to where you're walking? And you, kid," He glared at Mia as well. "-that's number one for you. She can get up on her own. Now hurry."  
He felt like the old man he really was, yelling at people because he couldn't control his temper. But it's not like he really felt bad for being like that. He turned and kept walking; they weren't too far.  
But just then, he 'felt' a drop of water on his red hair. Then another... And another.  
_Great._ He thought angrily. It just had to start raining _now_.

Yuka got to her feet quickly. She had humiliated herself and had gotten chastised for it. She had to accept that, it was her fault after all. As she dusted off her knees, the water poured down. She felt a bit vain, because now that she was drenched, she was concerned about how her hair looked. Pathetic. And she called herself a kunoichi? Yuka fastened her pace. Composing herself after tripping had put her farther behind than she already was.

Deidara wiped the raindrops from his face as he followed Sasori. He remembered what had happened the night before with the fish. Now he was not wanting to get to the hideout more than before.

"SEEEENNNNPPPAAAAAIIIII!!!!!!!!!!" The call came out of no where. Suddenly, Tobi glomped his beloved senpai, pushing him to the ground. "I missed you so much, senpai! It's been a whole day, almost! That's way to long to not be with you, senpai. Zetsu-san said you were coming today. Tobi was a very good boy so he could come and surprise you, yup."

Oh no, anyone but _him_. If Sasori was still human, his hands would be bleeding at how deep his fingernails were carving with his clenched fists. Although they were basically at the hideout, he didn't want to stay out in the rain. It's not that he was worried about his hair getting wet. He was more worried about his puppet body... No, not it deteriorating, it was far too preserved for that; but he knew how much of a pain it would be to clean it all and every joint later without damaging himself.  
"I'm going to go ahead." He stated in that irritated tone without even looking at the masked man. "Come along, Yuka." He had to guide her; after all, it his decision if she had come or not and he knew better than to hand over that responsibility to Deidara.

Miya looked down slightly wide-eyed at the rather _interesting_ sight of Tobi glomping Deidara and not shutting up, like a hyperactive kid greeting his parents after a long time away from them. "Um..." She really didn't know if she should follow Sasori as well or stand out in the rain waiting for them.

Yuka followed Sasori to the hideout almost _eagerly_. Why? She didn't even know. It was something different. Plus, hopefully it would mean getting out of the rain. It had just occurred to her that some of her tracking devices could get damaged in such heavy rain.

Deidara pushed Tobi off him and stood. "Tobi, you've been a very bad boy. I'm covered in mud now, un."

Tobi nearly burst into tears. "I'm so sorry, Senpai! Tobi wants to be a good boy!"

Deidara didn't answer the masked ninja. He simply nodded to Miya, indicating to follow him as he made his way to the hideout.

Sasori stopped at the entrance to the hideout. One single tag was stuck on a wall, while somehow connected to many others; it was one of their ways of preventing anyone from finding their way into their hideouts, this one specially - it was one of their most important ones and had extra security, just in case. He quickly performed the hand seal combination_s_ that allowed one to go in. "Follow me." He said as the entrance appeared before their eyes.

Miya followed Deidara, slightly disturbed by Tobi's reaction, but not actually showing it. Instead, she gave him a sympathetic smile. "I think Tobi's a good boy... Good boys make mistakes too sometimes." She said in that kind tone parents used on their children when they were upset.

Yuka nodded and followed after Sasori. She looked around as they walked. Oddly, the further she walked into the hideout, the homier it got--the hallway had a long rug that looked a bit expensive. There were also paintings on the wall. These, however, were very grotesque and gory.

A figure stepped into the room. "Oh, Sasori-san, what are we going to do with you?" The figure stepped into the more lit area where Sasori was [Yuka noted that the woman sported a blue flower in her hair, swiftly wiping his damp hair out of his face and putting her hands on her waist. "Bringing home a stray like this..." She looked at Yuka, frowning. "Of course I already know about you."

Yuka could not help but feel slightly angry at Konan's comment. A stray?? "That's funny," She said. "It's my job to know information about people, but I've never heard of _you._"

Tobi squealed with delight and hugged Miya. "You're so nice!"

Deidara grunted and led the two into the hideout before the seal closed the entrance. As he walked with them down the hallway, he vaguely stated that behind some of the doors were bedrooms [Tobi had pointed out which room was whose, one led to another floor underground, and one was a bathroom. "There are only two bathrooms, which is quite unfortunate, un. Konan refuses to share the bathroom with any of us men and Tobi."

Tobi cocked his head slightly, but did not catch the insult. Tobi was silent for a moment, then whispered [loudly "Lookie, there's Konan right there with Sasori-san and Super-Cool-Spy-Chica." _A stray..._ "Um, senpai, did we get a puppy?"

Sasori paid no attention to the decoration; maybe one day he'd tell her which one of those paintings was one of _his_ works, but right now there were more important things to deal with. He stopped at the sight of Konan... He rarely ever saw her - and often failed to remember her name-, but she always seemed to act like a 'mother' to them when it was necessary - such as what she had just now done to his hair. She was also one of the easiest to anger, however... And Sasori knew better than to do that; his skills weren't narrowed down to causing paper cuts on their hands.

"Konan-san... I am assuming Zetsu has mentioned Yuka, then." He said calmly - odd, at least for anyone who had seen him just moments before and didn't know him so well. "I would prefer if you didn't call her a stray, however. I believe she has... Potential." He looked back and saw figures approaching. "As for that other girl... Last-minute thing. She's a medic-nin, it seems; you should speak to Deidara about it."

Miya smiled as Tobi hugged her; he sort of reminded her of a little kid... And somehow reminded her of Uzumaki Naruto when he was speaking with Sakura one time.  
She followed Deidara, standing a couple of feet behind, looked from a side to another, trying to memorize which door was which. She also decided not to explain the insult to Tobi... Hear him cry again wasn't on her to-do list.  
"Well..." Miya looked up ahead when Tobi mentioned the three people. "If she's a woman I totally understand why she wouldn't..." She whispered. "And um, no, Tobi-san, I think that's not what she meant by 'stray'..."

Yuka inwardly beamed at the 'potential' remark. It was nice to hear someone praise her...especially to someone who had called her a 'stray'.

Konan looked over Yuka quickly. The leader already knew about her, she was his to deal with. "Fine. Do with her what you must, Sasori-san." She strode over to Deidara. "Deidara, explain yourself. Why did you recruit this one? Do you want to publicize our organization? _Or is your hand not good enough for you?_ "

Deidara put his hand to his chest in mock astonishment. "Why, Konan-san! I can't believe you'd imply such a thing. I mean, isn't that what you're for, un?" Konan had a bad temper, yes, but at the moment, Deidara didn't care. After taking a moment to watch Konan's color drain from her face, he said much more seriously. "I believe Danna told you that Miya was a medic nin. That would be very helpful to our group, considering how often Hidan's head gets chopped off and with all the 'boo-boos' Tobi gets. There's also Itachi's vision problem, Zetsu needs fertilizer, and Kisame's skin dries out in the heat--"

"Shut it!" How dare he mock her, Konan? Unfortunately, he DID have a point...She turned to Miya, immediately noticing she wore a leaf headband. "What kind of terms are you on with the Leaf?"

Sasori nodded at Konan. In a way he saw her as a superior - not actually because she was paired with Leader, but more because she was a strong woman. He didn't treat her with as much respect when they spoke, though... Maybe because then he would only see her as a fellow artist. Either way, it didn't matter. "Come." He told Yuka as he headed to a room farther down the hallway; over time he had learned _not_ to have his workspace in his room with Deidara around. Now it wasn't as much because of him, but because of how organized everything was now. And because of Tobi. "We'll have to think of a test now."  
The way Konan had put it, he assumed speaking to Pein-sama wasn't necessary... At least until the end of the test.

Miya looked at Konan when she approached them; the flower on her blue hair and the labret piercing were the first things she noticed. She sounded like a serious person, but Miya had to stifle a laugh at her remark. Maybe because she had said something similar when the two had met.  
However, her already calm - if not slightly intimidated - expression grew more serious when Deidara mocked her, only to be snapped at. _Wow..._ She thought, after he had at least explained her purpose. _They all seemed to have problems. I wonder which one is the most nor--_  
Her train of thoughts was interrupted when Konan directed her attention to her. "Well..." She thought about it. She was part of the village, but what kind of shinobi agreed to work for an organization with some probably unknown purpose... And with shinobi that had left their village, if they were all like Deidara. "My bonds with Konoha aren't as tight as I thought. I don't really want to go back there, if that's what you're wondering." She answered securely.

Yuka followed Sasori into his workspace silently. At this point, she had nothing to say. All she had to do was follow directions. She didn't look at it as being a little kid being ordered around by an adult, but as a mission that she must succeed in doing.

Konan nodded slowly. Most of the members here couldn't or wouldn't go back to their native village. "If you were to go back, would it raise suspicion?"


	16. Part Seize

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Seize

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

The room itself was the size of one of the shared bedrooms, but it looked much smaller with the many shelves, closed cupboards and much more. It smelled particularly nice, which was odd considering the corpses that would stay in one of the corners of the room (think; that bed-like thing where corpses usually are in the morgue), right next to a small desk where a lot of tools, from simple to scary-looking were. There was also a slightly bigger and emptier desk on the smaller space between the door and wall; however, instead of hammers or even surgery tools, there were brushes and a few canvases on the floor.

Sasori took one of the only two seats in the room; one of those small chairs with wheels on the bottom, to proportion easy access to every corner of the room. The other seat was a chair next to a bookshelf by the door... It wasn't a reading space, no. More than just Deidara had been willing to sit in silence and watch the puppet master work. Pein had once done that... Sasori couldn't remember _fearing_ someone would look down upon his art that much ever since he was a kid and hoped for Chiyo's acknowledgment. "You can sit there." He motioned to that seat. He had his chair in the middle - if the small space between the furniture could be called as much - of the room. "Now... What should we do for this test..."

"This soon, probably, yeah." Miya nodded. "At least the more experienced shinobi or the Hokage herself would question why I had returned from a seemingly long trip no later than a month after I left. Or at least I'd be suspi--"  
Miya was interrupted by a white-haired man stomping down the hallway yelling a very colourful choice of words... He seemed angry, but the most noticeable thing about him was the pike protruding from his stomach and the blood that continuously dripped down his open cloak. Anyone would be dead by now... Was this that Hidan person Deidara mentioned? The one who often got his head chopped off? If so it made _a lot_ more sense, even though it still amazed her how he'd survive.

"DAMNIT KONAN!" He yelled just as loud as he had been doing all this time, stopping next to them. "Just let me use your fucking bathroom for once, we're out of damn towels! What the fuck am I supposed to do, sit on my ass waiting for a couple of towels just to have that bastard Kakuzu yelling at me about how it's bloody expensive to pay for all the cleaning bills caused by MY blood!?" He looked to his side to see the rest of the people present. "And who the fuck are you?" He asked Miya, who only looked at him wide-eyed.

Yuka looked around the room awkwardly. It was definitely..._ interesting_. It reminded her of a lab of a mad scientist...just more...chic...and lacked all the beakers and vials. Sasori hadn't made her uncomfortable at all, but this room did. She saw herself laying on the metal bed, getting dissected. She shuddered at the thought and turned to Sasori. She knew she wasn't dying yet, so she didn't have to worry about her internal organs being violated. "You can do whatever you would like, Sasori-san. After all, you are in charge."

Konan flicked her hand in the air. Out of no where, a hoard of paper cranes slashed at Hidan's neck. The cut and sliced him until his head was hanging to the side, still attached to his neck by a strip of flesh. "This, Hidan, is Akatsuki's new medic. She will be tending with your wounds when Kakuzu doesn't feel like being around a religious ass like you. Treat her with some respect or answer to me." She whipped around quickly and stalked off down the hallway.

Deidara's jaw wanted to drop to the ground. As it was still attached to his skull, he simply stood there with his mouth open. Konan had given in that quickly? It was amazing. She usually was a stiff prat...Deidara figured that it was either his own intellect or Hidan's rant about the towels. Come to think of it, Konan ignored Hidan's complaint all together. Typical Konan. He looked to Miya and smiled. "Well, welcome, un."

"Hmm..." Sasori shifted in his seat so he was facing one of the closer cupboards. He opened it and took out a syringe with a transparent blue-ish liquid - doing it as to keep Yuka from seeing what he was doing. He examined it thoroughly before he closed the same cupboard again -this time locking it- and stood up. "I believe... I do have an idea..." He headed towards the door. "I shall be calling one of my colleagues. Until then," He looked at her with that slightly bored expression... And suddenly his hand was holding her arm while holding that same syringe with the other one, injecting it on her arm and letting go only when the last drop had gone through the silver needle. "Enjoy." He finished.  
It was as if he hadn't done anything that he left the room and left the door half open.  
It was just a truth serum of sorts... However, it was mixed with another substance that made it awkwardly painful after some time.  
He made it to Kisame and Itachi's room rather quickly and called for Kisame. "I need you to use your... Interrogation skills." He told the shark-like man.

"Oh?" Kisame grinned, revealing his sharp teeth. "And why would that be?"

"The new spy. Just ask her some simple questions that are of our and her knowledge... About Suna, and such. If she doesn't answer in the state she is - or will be in the next few minutes -, then it's safe to assume she won't betray us."

Kisame looked at Sasori for a moment, deep in thought. "If you say so, 'Sori... Let us get going then." He said, leading the way back to the puppeteer's work room.

"Don't call me that." The redhead growled, following the taller man.

"Hey what the fuck, don't just walk away!" Hidan shouted, trying to hold his head in place so it wouldn't fall completely. He was bleeding even more now and although it was, well, disturbing to an extent, it was also somewhat comical. It was like one of those characters in some stories who would often get hurt but always survive and make the readers/watchers laugh.

In fact, Miya had a hard time keeping a neutral expression. Maybe the fact that this lady Konan had somehow acknowledged her helped; she seemed to impose a lot of respect around here. She ended up smiling at Deidara. "Thanks, I suppose... So... _How _exactly am I supposed to sow Hidan-sempai's head back on?"

Hidan-sempai? In the religious man's point of view, a simple -san would have been enough. Maybe she was just trying to cause a good impression; not that it was that useful, she'd probably end up dead at the hands of one of them. "I don't fucking care, just stitch it until that bastard Kakuzu comes back in a few hours and stop my damn bleedings." Of course, he wasn't saying it as angrily as how he had been saying things all along; he was just used to cursing.

"... Well... You don't expect me to do that in the middle of a corridor, do you?"

Yuka frowned and rubbed her arm after the injection. She wasn't expecting that at all. She didn't like needles that much, so it was good she had been unaware of them until the last moment. She would have gone berserk. _Enjoy_? What the hell was that? That mad was such a sadist. What was she supposed to be enjoying? This wasn't exactly fluffy bunnies and rainbows.  
She looked around the room in a daze, waiting for the puppet to return. By the time he returned with a rather tall blue man, her muscles were tightening violently. She glared at the two with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. She spoke through clenched teeth. "You look mighty...dashing...in your red cloudy-ness...Saso...ri."

"Senpai, Tobi wants a puppy!" Tobi whined, tugging on Deidara's sleeve.

Deidara jerked his arm away. "Oddly, Miya, the kitchen is the cleanest place besides Konan's bathroom. You can do it there." Beckoning her and Hidan to follow him, he let the way to the kitchen--a large room with white counters and white tiles. "Don't get too much blood everywhere, Hidan, un."

Sasori frowned. "Why thank you. I thought it would have taken a bit longer for the serum to take effect..." He sat back on the small bench with hes back leaned against the cupboard, while Kisame leaned against, suppressing the urge to tell Sasori that he was being more self-centered right there than Itachi in three days.

He grinned at Yuka. "I'm Hoshigaki Kisame and I'll be asking you a couple of questions. Let's start off by... What is your name, why did you leave Suna and would you ever think of betraying us?"

"Don't push it Kisame, it's not like this will make her answer _everything_..." Sasori muttered, a look of interest finding its way onto his face.

"..." Miya gave him a blank stare as they reached the kitchen. "... You expect me to work _here_ until one of you kills me?" She asked. "Next you'll be telling me I have to sleep under the table." She pulled a chair and told Hidan to sat on it - after convincing him to take the damned pike out of his stomach -, while she got some water and simple things she might need and proceeded to kneel down next to him. _Bloody masochist..._ She thought to herself as the green healing chakra made contact with the hole in the man's stomach.

Hidan just stared at the ceiling; this was probably going to take a while, or so he thought. "So you're just gonna stand there, blondie?" He asked with a smirk, looking over at Deidara.

Yuka grimaced. "That's too many...questions at once." Yuka doubled over and coughed, blood dripping from her lip. He has asked her name...that was the only thing she caught. She knew she had to treat this like any other mission...therefore she should assume a false identity...but she had the urge to spill her heart and soul out. Truthfully. "My name...is...Yu...kie. Yukie." She had nearly spoken the truth. She had surprised herself by not speaking truthfully. The temptation was great.

Deidara glanced at Hidan. "Why do you care? Shouldn't you be worried about your head getting put back on in the right direction, un?"

Kisame looked back at Sasori who merely raised an eyebrow. By now they understood each other's expressions without having to actually say things out loud.  
Kisame had taken it to go on and so he turned back to Yuka and grinned again. "Yukie, eh... Not sure if I _believe_ you, but we can let this one go," He assumed only a genius like Sasori would have done something so powerful, so if she could hold on a little longer then he doubted even a good enough torture squad could get a hold on information from her so easily.  
... Of course he might be wrong and that's why he wouldn't just leave now and classify her as trustworthy enough. "Who is your village's Leader?"

"It annoys me if you just fucking stand there being useless." Hidan replied, keeping that smirk although he was inwardly twitching at the reply. His expression was replaced by shock, however, when his head was put in place and a needle pierced his skin. "Hey, what the fuck!"

Miya was holding a needle she had taken out of her pouch; a medical one, anyway, just like what she was using to sow Hidan's head to his neck. "I've just had about enough of your blood on my hands. This will probably keep it in place until that Kakuzu person comes back and fixes it. Unless you decide to take up headbanging as a hobby." She muttered, quickly - and not very professionally knowing the man wouldn't die - running the needle through his skin and wrapping a bandage around it. "Now, onto more gory subjects." She said to herself, turning her attention back to the fresh wound on his stomach.

"Does this mean I can't move my freaking head?" Hidan asked, looking more like an angry kid now.

"Yes, it does."

"Fuck."

_Gaara-sama _screamed in Yuka's head. She couldn't say it. She had already screwed up a second ago. She _knew_ it. In attempt to blurt out, she bit her tongue, blood filling in her mouth. She clenched her eyes tightly shut. She realized if she bit her tongue much harder, it may fall off. She loosened her jaw a little bit. Struggling, she blurted out again. "It doesn't matter...I don't serve him anymore."

Itachi walked in Sasori's room irritably. "Kisame, what did you do with my lotion?" He walked over to the shark. "Don't you dare tell me that you don't know. You smell like French Vanilla--" He looked over at Yuka. Torture, eh? He decided he would interrogate his partner later and watch the 'show'.

Deidara strummed his fingers on the counter. "I'm not helpful, un? Would you like me to seal your wounds with my clay, Hidan?" He paid no attention to Hidan, so he didn't even know if he replied or not. _Fuck_ . Deidara looked up with a bored expression.

Zetsu slid in the room stealthily and stood behind Hidan. His black part spoke, "You're looking mighty tasty, Hidan."

"Itachi-san, you should learn to knock before you go into someone else's room." Sasori said in a monotone, watching Yuka. She seemed to be trying really hard not to say the entire truth. "Two more Kisame."

"But _mom_...!" Kisame told the redhead in a mocking tone which earned him a death glare. He liked this sort of interrogation thing and didn't feel like having to answer to Itachi about the lotion thing. Oh well, at least he couldn't complain about him smelling like fish all the time.  
"Anyway," He coughed and turned his attention back to Yuka. "Who is the host of the Shukaku?"

Hidan's color seemed to drain from his face at the sound of Zetsu's voice. "Get the fuck away from me, cannibal!" He shouted. He would have gotten him, hadn't Miya let out a shriek at the adjective he had used to describe the man that had just arrived.  
In fact, she looked up at him only momentarily before she directed her attention back to the biggest wound that was now almost completely sealed.

Yuka swallowed her blood. It instantly made her stomach lurch. She knew it would. It also bought her some time so she could answer properly. "I..." She coughed violently. "Don't know."

Deidara inwardly laughed. He had forgotten to mention Zetsu's eating habits to Miya.

Zetsu licked the side of Hidan's face. "Your blood tastes very good, Hidan." The white said added. "We'll have you soon." With that, the giant plant stalked away.


	17. Part DixSept

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Dix-Sept

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto (c) Kishimito

Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

* * *

Kisame would have frowned, but he was too busy thinking of his last question before Sasori would make him leave to his imminent doom at the hands of Itachi and the still lurking question about his French Vanilla lotion.  
"Kisame..." Sasori said slowly, eying the man suspiciously. He _knew_ it was easy to ask a question, any question, so why was he taking so long.  
"Gee, 'Sori take it easy." The shark-like man grinned, completely ignoring the redhead's scowl upon being treated by such a nickname. "So 'Yukie'... Have you thought 'I'd hit that' about any of the members in the organization so far?" He asked.  
"Kisame!" Sasori snapped. He should have trusted Itachi or Konan with this instead.

No, that did not classify under a fangirl-esque moment in Miya's book. Why? Because it didn't sound perverted coming from the plant-man... It sounded downright disturbing. She just sort of stared as he left until Hidan snapped her out of it.  
"Ew, what the fuck Zetsu!" Hidan shouted, his hand running through his face as if he'd be willing to peel off the skin that had just been licked. But instead of doing that he looked down at the brunette who was suppressing a yawn.  
"Geez, get some sleep." He stood up, only a minor bleeding still present and the rest all just remainders of his ritual. "Anyway, I'm gonna go find some fucking towels to clean up." He waved his hand lazily and walked off.

Yuka gagged. What kind of question was that? At this point, the poison was in full blown effect. Yuka could barely move at all. And her desire to be truthful was increasing drastically. She groaned. "...Yes..."

Deidara wiped up some of the blood that Hidan had left behind with a towel and threw it away. There was no point in trying to clean and disinfect it. It would still be contaminated. He washed his hands vigorously, as if Hidan's blood would turn him into a Jashinist. "I suppose we should find a place for you to sleep...I don't know of we have any open sleeping quarters..."

Tobi chipped in his input. "Well, there's the broom closet. But there's spiders in there." he paused. "You can sleep in my race car bed, Miya-san."

Kisame's grin grew wider and he was about to ask who exactly when he felt himself being pushed outside.

"That's it, thank you Kisame, I think she can be trusted, now _go_." Sasori said bitterly, pushing the shark-like man and the Uchiha out of the room and closing the door as soon as they were in the corridor. He _sighed in relief_ and quickly walked over to the very same cupboard he had taken the first syringe out of, looking for the correct antidote.  
After a minute of looking through the various products, he finally found the antidote and injected into Yuka's arm. The sooner she got over this, the better, because Sasori did _not_ want to hear anything else - or maybe he was just in denial. Either way it worked for him.

"Congratulations."

"I'd sleep anywhere, even in a kitchen counter if I had to." Miya said, this time yawning like the insomniac she couldn't quite claim to be. However, at the thought of Zetsu she added as an afterthought; "Well, maybe not in a kitchen counter."  
She few slowly stood up, holding what few items she had taken the liberty to use to stop those wounds of Hidan's and washing them; she wasn't home, after all, so she shouldn't just leave that mess for someone else to clean up - although it wasn't even her own blood.  
Then she turned back to them and smiled kindly at Tobi. "That's very nice, but where will you sleep then?"

Yuka sat there, watching the shark and black-haired bishie leave the room. She didn't feel the needle in her arm until it had already been jerked out. Slowly, her muscles loosened and she was starting to revert to her normal self. _Congratulations...?_ That meant that she had done good. Success! She smiled slowly. "Awesome." She didn't trust her body to support itself if she stood, so she stayed in her seat--which was probably a good thing. If she had full mobility she might have done a jig.

Tobi grinned happily and pointed at Deidara as he said simultaneously. "With SENPAI!"

Deidara scowled. "No, you're _not._" He looked at Miya. "We'll find you a place to sleep. It will probably be wherever Danna decides to put Yuka." Seeing that the kitchen was returned to its previous condition, he walked to the hallway, looking from right to left, trying to decide where to take Miya while hopefully escaping from Tobi. "Perhaps we should go see Danna now."

Tobi's eyes widened. "In his _room_?"

Deidara's tone screamed 'duh.' "Where else would he be?"

"In a nice...sunshiny place...that's not scary." Tobi said, looking at his feet.

"You'll be alright in a few minutes." Sasori said as he put both needles he had used in a small container in the corner of the room; he was obviously going to disinfect or throw them away later, not just because they had someone's blood on them, but also because he had the _decency_ to not mix poisons.  
He then sat back down staring at who he considered his new subordinate. His expression was once again dull, but he seemed interested enough not to stay quiet. "I must say, you held on pretty well. I suppose this means we won't have to use mind control on you." _Or at least for now._ He added as an afterthought.

"Er..." Miya hoped that Tobi meant that in the most childish way possible, or she might just have a nosebleed.  
Luckily enough, Deidara gave him his own input on the situation and led her out of the kitchen. She only nodded at his logical explanation - for a moment she had forgotten about Yuka -, but later her expression turned into a frown. Why was Sasori's room scary?  
"Don't worry Tobi." She said, once again trying to sound as kind as possible. "I'm here, don't be scared."  
... And only now had she realized that Tobi was the most childish young man she had ever met. At this rate she'd be calling him her 'little brother' by sundown.

Yuka flexed her arm slowly. "Thank you." She didn't like the idea of being put under a mind control jutsu. She was now at a loss of words. She didn't know what to say. Should she say anything now? She knew she certainly wasn't going to bring up anything about Kisame's last question.

Tobi nodded, whimpering. "Thank you, Miya-san. You are so kind."

"Danna's room isn't scary." Deidara stated, leading the way to the puppet's room. "It's just...different." The hallway grew dim as they approached Sasori's room. "Just don't touch anything." He paused, recalling a time where Tobi had 'accidentally' damaged one of Sasori's newly made puppets. Somehow, the idiot had survived. "Do you understand, Tobi?"

"Yes, Senpai..."

"Only to those who deserve it, Tobi." Miya whispered and followed them to the entrance to Sasori's room. She didn't know what to expect, but... Probably something dark. He liked puppets, so maybe puppets all lined up against walls, or scrolls instead. And maybe more, who knows.  
"... Are you sure he won't be angry?" She asked, once again biting her lip. Sasori just sort of... Scared her. But maybe it's just because she didn't understand him.

"I'll have to warn Leader-sama later today." Sasori stated. He sat in silence, but upon acknowledging someone else's presence outside the room, he stood up and walked over to the door which he quickly open, starting blankly at the 'visitors'; Deidara, Tobi and the girl, Miya. "What." It came out as more of a dull statement rather than an actual question. But he wanted to know the reason to have his work room becoming the center of everyone's attention.

Tobi shifted his weight awkwardly, then glomped his superior. "Sasori-san! I love you." Tobi spoke childishly, like a little boy who hadn't seen his father in days and he had just come home with a bag of presents.

Deidara pulled Tobi off Sasori. "I was wondering where you were planning on keeping Yuka. Unless it was your bed or something, I figured Miya could stay there too."

Hearing her name, Yuka looked to the door. She summoned all her strength and slowly walked over there. By the time she got the doorway, her strength had zapped away. To keep herself from falling, she had to use Sasori for support. Unfortunately, if he moved, she would fall to the floor. "...What about me in a bed?"

"Get off me you idiot!" Sasori growled. Fortunately Deidara was just in time, or Sasori might have just stung a needle on Tobi's arm and let him to writhe in pain as they continued the exchange of words. He inwardly twitched at Deidara's not-so-subtle remark and almost failed to notice Yuka's presence completely. "Nothing, the brat's just trying to be a wise-ass again." He stated, then looking over at Miya who was staring awkwardly at her feet. "So you're staying, eh... What did you do exactly?" He asked her, knowing she probably didn't even expect him to direct any question to anyone but Deidara or Yuka.

"Huh?" Miya looked up like a shy kid. It was amazing how fast a person could change depending on who they were talking to or where they were. "I uh... Did my job as a doctor to stop Hidan-sempai's bleeding abdomen." She answered quite simply.  
As for the suffix... She reckoned '-sama' would be a bit too formal, but they were still her superiors and she'd use it for all of them if she had to. Well, except aybe for their Leader, whoever he or she might be. And Tobi and Yuka because, well... Because.

"Hmm..." Sasori gave a nod and looked up at the blond. "Good to know you weren't just desperate for some _company_." He told him, a smirk briefly crossing his face before the expression was once again very blank. "No, I hadn't thought of anywhere specific for either of them to stay. Isn't there an extra room somewhere?"

Deidara put his fist under his chin. "Well..." Deidara brainstormed, thinking of every random room in the hideout. He ignored his Danna's previous comment about the 'company'. "There's the broom closet by the kitchen...the laundry room...I got it, un." He snapped his fingers. "Hidan has an extra room used for his worship. They can sleep in there."

Tobi pipped happily. "Yes, Senpai! It's a good idea! It's right by my room. We can have sleepovers, Miya!" He giggled happily, shaking with delight.

Yuka nodded slowly, still leaning on Sasori. "Yeah...okay." Why not? It was only a room. She has slept in worse places before.

Miya looked over at Tobi. "Yeah, I guess that would be fun." Her only experience with anything even remotely related to sleepovers was sleeping at her teammate's house or having them sleep at hers, but nothing that was the slightest bit fun. She looked back down at her feet. "It's much better than nothing."

"... _Right_. I'm not so sure as to whether or not he'll _agree_." It was true, Hidan might chose some pretty colourful words to express a 'no'. But Sasori trusted that room more than he'd ever trust Zetsu's small greenhouse... and Hidan is never in any place to argue with anyone, anyway. "Doesn't matter, anyway. We should take you there now."

Yuka blinked slowly. "Is that a good idea, Sasori-san? I can't really walk right now." She felt her legs would give out any moment. On the bright side, she wasn't in any pain.

Deidara rolled his eyes. That seemed like a lame excuse to get Danna to carry her. Unless Danna poisoned her so he could carry her. Eh, logically speaking she was recovering from some kind of poison...but probably not for those reasons. Un. He shook his head and turned to Miya. "I'll show you where the room is."

Miya just nodded. "Okay then." She didn't have much to say at this point. However, she wondered if the room was as bloody as she had imagined when they mentioned who's room it was. She made a not to to look _too_ surprised. And also to warn them - or rather bitch at them - about the work conditions. She doubted she'd need a lot of medical supplies, but she'd be a happy doctor if she could work with some _basic_ medical and sanitary conditions- after all, a kitchen where people supposedly _cooked_ and _ate_ wasn't exactly an examination room.

"Hmm?" Sasori frowned, but then remembered the whole serum/poison thing. The antidote's full effect wouldn't have shown itself this soon. "Oh, right. I'll take you there in a while then. Unless you really must go now, in which case I'll have to sigh irritably but comply nonetheless." It's not that Sasori wasn't _strong_ enough to carry her. It's that it wasn't the same as carrying an injured teammate. "And please, I may not be the accurate definition of tall, but that doesn't make me less of a superior. I'd very much like it if you treated me with due respect so I can do the same."

Yuka nodded slowly. She gripped the doorway, trying to force her strength to return. "I don't need to go now, Sasori-senpai," She said. Was that respectful enough? Or should she say '-sama'? "Unless you insist on taking me now. I would willingly comply." She closed her eyes tightly. She did not mean for it to sound like that.

Deidara walked down the hallway with Tobi and Miya. "Hidan should probably be warned..." He said absentmindedly, turning a corner. "But he's probably already there." He opened the first door on his right and nodded to himself. Yeah, Hidan was already in the room.

"ZOH-MY-GOD, Hidan-san, guess what!" Tobi blurted out. "Miya and Yuka are going to sleep in here."


	18. Part DixHuit

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Dix-huit

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto Characters (c) Kishimoto

Yokaze no Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

Kurosawa Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

* * *

"..." Sasori chose not to comment in the hopes of avoiding some unnecessary discussion. However, it wasn't exactly his decision to take; Yuka had yet to regain her strength - had he overdone it with such a high dose of poison? -, but that didn't make her any less capable of making decisions. "It is your well-being we're talking about, not mine."

Hidan was quite silently praying. The bandage that had been around his neck had been replaced by a newer one, indicating that Kakuzu had finally gotten around to sweing back his partner's head. However, his head snapped up at the sound of Tobi's -loud- voice, and he turned around to face them. "What the fuck!?" He yelled angrily. "How the hell do you dare interrupt my prayers to Jashin-sama, you good for nothing idiots!" Hidan obviously didn't like it when Jashin was insulted in such ways. "And who the hell said they could fucking sleep in here!?"

Miya didn't look as taken aback this second time. She tried to sound more serious instead of terrified. "We don't have anywhere else to stay."

Yuka shrugged. "Either way, I'll live." She paused, hearing yelling from down the hall. This 'Hidan' must not be happy with the situation. She didn't blame him. After a moment, she felt confident enough to walk. "Perhaps we should go ahead down there..."

Deidara knocked Tobi in the head. "I'm sorry, Hidan. Miya and Yuka need a place to sleep. Your room is the only one that is habitable." Deidara knew this wasn't going to go well, but he was trying his best to make it go as smoothly as possible.

"Are you sure?" Sasori asked, much like a father would ask his child if they were confident about their first day at a new school, or a person would ask their best friend what was wrong. It wasn't intentional, he was supposed to sound cold; a lot of his personality traits matched Itachi's, so why was he acting like her _cared_?  
He couldn't possibly... Could he?

Miya just patted Tobi on the shoulder as she listened to Deidara and Hidan, who was by now glaring at them with such might that she was sure he could drill holes on their foreheads simply with his mind.  
"Hey blondie, listen to me carefully: **Fuck. No.**" He said slowly and angrily. The man was very religious, very faithful to Jashin. Letting them take advantage of the place where he could show the most of his devotion to the godly entity outside battles was simply outrageous in his point of view.

Yuka looked at Sasori with an odd expression. "Yes. I'm sure." She stepped into the hallway. "You'll have to show me the way...I wasn't really paying attention to where they went."

Deidara returned the glare, but it wasn't as piercing as Hidan's. After all, it wasn't his room that was getting invaded. "Listen to me. There. Is. No. Other. Place." Did Hidan expect them to sleep outside or something?

Sasori nodded. If she said so, he'd believe her; if she happened to find out she wasn't as sure, well... He couldn't blame her. Poisons are always tricky. He stepped into the hallway as well, walking slowly at her side. "Alright then. The room isn't that far."

"..." Hidan glared even more at Deidara. So it was true, the only other rooms were Zetsu's 'greenhouse', Sasori's room and probably a couple more that had already been claimed for whatever reason. "Just this once. If they fucking interrupt me or start with all that girly shit talk when I'm here, they might as well go sleep in Zetsu's cannabis plantation.

Tobi grinned. "Cannabis?"

Deidara elbowed the masked ninja in the gut. "Drugs are bad for you, un." He turned to Hidan. "Thank you, Hidan. I'm sure we'll be able to find another place soon."

Yuka made it to Hidan's room unaided, which actually surprised her. She glanced in the doorway, finding a white-haired man griping at Deidara. This must be Hidan. "He doesn't look too happy, Sasori-senpai," she said, pointing out the obvious.

"He never is." Sasori told her with a shake of his head. Hidan wasn't ever actually happy unless he was doing a good job worshiping that god-like entity, Jashin. "He'll be in a better mood the day he converts us all to Jashin... When hell freezes over.

"Hey!" Hidan looked over at Sasori, completely ignoring Deidara thanking him and even Tobi mentioning Zetsu's drugs. "Watch it, shortie. I _will_ have you all worshiping Jashin-sama one day. Just you wait and see."

Sasori rolled his eyes. "I have an eternity to 'wait and see', but I'd rather id you made it as soon as possible. I don't like waiting."

Miya just stood there. Her arms were crossed and she was looking from Sasori to Hidan as they argued. "Oh, this will be _fun_." She muttered, adding a 'bunch of weirdos' under her breath; sure, she was weird herself but... This was just way too much. She wondered if she'd have any mental sanity left by the end of the week - completely discarding her personality issues, of course.

Yuka looked around the room, not wanting to get pulled into the argument quite yet. She looked over at Miya and smiled. "Hallo there, Miya-chan. So, this is the place we're bunking for the night?" She paused. "Lovely, isn't it?" Her sarcasm was well masked. It almost seemed like she liked the room. Well, it was just a room, after all...

Deidara glanced from Sasori to Hidan and then to Yuka. He couldn't find anything to say. "It seems my part in this is done..." He turned and started to walk down the hallway.

"_Definitely_." Miya shook her head, sighing almost inaudibly. The room itself wasn't the problem; it's not like she hadn't slept in worse places and under worse conditions... But she felt like she was violating someone else's sense of personal space - and if she wasn't that eager to have someone doing that to her, then she'd like the same level of respect back. She looked over at the doorway when Deidara left. "He seemed more impulsive yesterday." She said to no one in particular.

Sasori looked at the people present in the room. "Hn. We'll leave you two to try and settle in... If that is, at all possible." He grabbed Hidan by the still somewhat fragile neck - although it proved difficult to do so with the height difference. "Come along. Tobi, you come too." He demanded as he dragged the religious man out the door.

"Hey what the fuck!" Hidan tried to pull away from Sasori's grasp, but doing so might have him end up losing his head and he didn't want that; Kakuzu had left for a bounty hunt for the rest of the day. "I already gave them Jashin-sama's shrine, I-"

"The least you can do is let them have their privacy now. Besides, you're done with your prayers for the time being." The redhead interrupted. " And don't try to deny it, I know very well it's true."

Yuka watched the men start to leave the room. She walked around the room slowly, examining it closely. It was quite spacious. She turned back to Hidan as he was being dragged out. "Thank you, Hidan-san. Your room will serve well as my sleeping quarters." It was true, but she said it partly to piss him off more. She felt a little bad afterwards. Not for Hidan, but to Sasori.

Tobi giggled and grasped Hidan's hand. "It's okay, Hidan-san! You can help me and Konan make dinner! We're making _papas fritas_ and tacos!"

Deidara stopped his walking and glanced at Tobi funnily. "French fries and tacos? I don't understand how Konan-san comes up with such odd meals, un."

Miya looked around, taking in every detail of the room. And just after Yuka was done with poking some more fun at Hidan - even if rather subtly -, she leaned with her back against the wall and closed her eyes as she lazily slid down to the floor in a less than healthy sitting pose. There, she was at it again; if she was known for anything than her shinobi skills, then it would be because of the personality issues that seem to run in the family. Although the sudden changes were usually very subtle, they could be triggered by a simple action or word... And the complexity of the human brain made it even more confusing as one could change their mind so quickly. It was probably, she recalled, the reason why she had so easily agreed to go out- no, _hang out_ (simply because 'going out' had that other meaning other than the action og going somewhere outside) with Deidara.

"There's no way in hell I'd help you _cook_!" Hidan protested, snatching his own hand way from Tobi's. "I'd rather be placed under Tsukiyomi three times in a row."

"Are you forgetting you'd _enjoy_ any kind of torture, Hidan?" Sasori raised an eyebrow at the man. He added a 'Masochist' as an afterthought, earning him a row of protests he chose to ignore as he looked over at his blonde partner. "Why? Don't you like her cooking?

Deidara's eyed widened. He hoped Konan didn't overhear that, wherever she was. "No! It's just...it doesn't go together. It's like having peas with your pancakes, un."

Tobi licked his lips. "That's my favorite!"

Yuka sat on the floor, her legs crossed in a pretzel shape. "Are you okay, Miya-chan?"

"You're all just crazy!" Hidan raised his arms in an over dramatic manner and walked off rambling on about some random subject that seemed to include the words 'Pagans', 'convert' and 'Jashin'.

Sasori didn't even _bother_ to point out just how much Hidan was being a hypocrite, instead paying attention to the other two. "First of all, Tobi, that is plain _sick_. And second, at least Konan can cook without burning her arms to oblivion and back around the block."

"Huh?" Miya looked over at Yuka, her eyelids semi-closed. However, she managed a smile. "Yeah, I'm okay. I sort of get like this sometimes, don't worry..."

Yuka nodded. "Okay," She looked around the room and then took her shoes off. Because she felt like it. "Do you want to go explorin' with me or..." She paused, a mischievous grin forming on her face. "Or would you like to talk about your crush on Deidara-san?" Yuka didn't actually _know_ what Miya thought of Deidara, but she was bored enough the imply such things.

Deidara huffed loudly. "I wish you wouldn't bring that up, Danna. ...Un."

Tobi jumped up and down hyperly. "Bring what up? What, what? Did you set yourself on fire, Senpai?"

"Now, now, brat, there's no need to be embarrassed." Sasori had to hold back a smirk at this. He felt like he was being too, 'out of character', lately. It's not that he didn't know what the meaning of fun was - he was finding this moment extremely amusing, after all -, but he wasn't quite sunshine and rainbows - if anything he was the second most antisocial around. It might have all just been in his head, though. He wasn't used to dealing with outside influences for more than a mere five minutes before they fell dead to the ground, so maybe he was criticizing his own personality changes in vain. "Yes, Tobi, he set his arms on fire by accident. Or so it seemed."

In spite of the sudden but not quite unusual change in her mental state, Miya was going to agree with Yuka on exploring the hideout. However, before she could say anything, a new 'option' to kill off time had been added to the former statement. One that, along with that expression on the other woman's face, made her gasp and look up wide-eyed. "My _what_ on _who_?"

Deidara's jaw dropped in protest. "Or so it seemed? Danna, do you really think I did it on _purpose?_"

Tobi giggled. "You're so silly, Senpai."

Yuka inclined her head. "You know...your crush on Deidara." She added. "I can so totally tell you like him from your expression." Yuka nearly choked on her words. They were that of a prissy school girl, not a kunoichi. Plus, Miya's expression was that of shock, not embarrassment.

Sasori merely shrugged at the suggestion. "I'm just saying, brat. I mean, would you not find it odd that the only time you were severely injured without participating in a fight was when you had two pretty girls around?" The way he said it sounded so neutral, as if he was just commenting on how something looked better in a different color. "Men do a lot for attention."

Miya looked at Yuka for at least one whole minute without blinking, her expression literally shouting 'what the hell'. When she managed to say anything the least bit coherent, she spoke up. "_What_ exactly makes it so obvious?" No, she wasn't saying she was the least bit attracted to Deidara. She was just asking.

Deidara raised an eyebrow. "What about you, Danna? It that what the whole riding on Hiruko thing was about, un?"

Yuka paused. "You mean you like him?" She laughed slightly. "Honestly, I made half that stuff up..." She looked at the floor awkwardly, remembering Kisame's last question from her interrogation.

"I can ask the same thing about your crazy stunts on your clay bird. Or were you just trying to get her to have a heart attack?" Sasori glared at him. He wanted to say no and explain how it was simply because the field they had been traveling through was dangerous, but he _knew_ anyone would have survived it. And he _knew_ it was more than just that one factor - he had grown attached to her in a matter of hours. But he wasn't letting it show, he knew better than to do so.

"No, no, I didn't mean that!" Miya protested, frowning. She bit her lip, shifting to a slightly more comfortable sitting position. "And even if I did, it would be unrequited love." She added; it was meant to be a thought, but she said it out loud, anyway.  
She looked over at Yuka. "You okay?"

Deidara shot Sasori a dirty look as they walked down the hallway. It was a bit of a cheap shot, but he retorted, "Well, un, if I _did_ like her, at least I'm not old enough to be her father, un."

Yuka shook her head. "It's nothing. This giant blue guy...Kisame...was asking me questions while I was under influence of a truth serum. He asked me...a question...concerning...uh, basically if I found anyone in Akatsuki attractive or not." She laughed, more out of recalling the uncomfortable situation than finding it humorous.

"Screw you, brat, I'm not _that_ old!" Sasori growled. It's not that he minded his age: it, was just a barrier between a human and eternity; one he had broken long ago. But it still bothered him when he was judged because of his age; what was he, now, a pedophile? That was that snake Orochimaru's job, not his.

Miya frowned, both because of this Kisame person being a 'giant blue guy', but also and more important, because of how awkwardly Yuka was acting while mentioning the event. "... And I'm taking it wasn't something you found easy to answer?"

Deidara cocked his head. "Really, Danna? Huh...I was under the impression you were about fifty." He stretched the age a tiny bit, but Deidara was certain that no matter how pretty his Danna was, he wasn't exactly _young_.

Yuka shook her head. "Oh no, it was easy to say 'yes'." Had she not been drugged...her answer would have been 'hell no!' It wouldn't have been the truth but 'yes' went against her work ethics. Damn that stupid serum. She stood up quickly. "I'm up for exploring now. How about you?"


	19. Part DixNeuf

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Dix-Neuf

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto Characters (c) Kishimoto

Yokaze no Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

Kurosawa Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

* * *

"Then you need an ear check. I never told you I had reached or passed half a century of existence." Sasori shot his partner a glare for a moment, before his expression was once again the dull, displeased one. "Besides, it's none of your business. Unless you're planning on molesting me in my sleep and not feel like a pedophile because I look younger than you."  
Well, he was sure Deidara wasn't any older than twenty-five and Sasori himself looked, what, some age between eighteen or twenty? Or maybe he looked a bit older than Dei to some people; maybe it was just the fact that he was shorter that made it all confusing. Ah well, screw looks.

"Uh... Sure." Miya nodded and stood up as well. She looked down for a moment, things seemed to spinning for a couple of seconds; it was just from being out in the rain, she had felt a bit tired now and the blood rushing through her body made her feel dizzy. She hoped she wasn't catching a cold. "Let's just not... Talk about this sort of thing. It makes me feel like one of those teenagers back in Konoha who could only ever comment on who was hot and who was not."

Deidara flicked his hand nonchalantly. "You never know, Danna, I just might be planning on it." Sarcasm was more apparent than the fact that Deidara had said it. He looked around the hallway dully. He hated finishing missions. There was always a lapse of time afterwards where he didn't have anything to do besides sleep, like now.

Tobi pulled on Deidara's hand. "Senpai, do you want to make heart-shaped cookies with me?"  
He had spoken so suddenly, it was a bit surprising. After being quiet for so long it was like he wasn't even there.

Yuka nodded. "I understand." She paused. "Hypothetically. There weren't many girls in my 'class' when I attended school...nor was there anyone I found attractive." She stepped out into the hallway. "Maybe we should find the kitchen and raid it first."

"I had enough of that with Orochimaru, thank you very much." Sasori muttered darkly under his breath. He was about to keep walking when he heard Tobi speak up. Had he been there all along? "I'm sure he'd _love_ to spend quality time with you, Tobi. In fact, if you don't take it as prying into your personal life, I'd very much enjoy watching you two bake."

"Oh trust me, Konoha is just..." Miya shuddered. "Before it was always 'Uchiha Itachi this', 'Uchiha Itachi that', Itachi everywhere! Then only a couple of years ago it was always 'Uchiha Sasuke this', 'Uchiha Sasuke that'. It got annoying." She rolled her eyes, but quickly followed Yuka. "Yeah, the kitchen sounds good."

Tobi squealed. "YAY! Senpai! You're gonna bake cookies with me!!" He jumped up and down. "oh, oh, Sasori-san," he said as he pulled Deidara into the kitchen, where the ingredients were already set on the counter. "Be sure to take pictures so we can remember this _forever_!"

Deidara glared at Tobi. "I don't want to bake cookies!" Tobi didn't listen to him though. And with Danna's support, he was probably going to have to do it too. "And don't take pictures, un!"

"Uchiha Itachi, huh?" Yuka said, walking down the hallway. "Yeah...he has a lovely physique...but some kind of weird obsession with French Vanilla lotion." She laughed as she walked, eventually making it to the kitchen with Miya.

"I'm sorry Tobi, but Kakuzu took the camera with him." Sasori lowered his head, shaking it slightly in fake disappointment; he just didn't want his kohai to be _that_ miserable. Or at least not _now_.  
He sat by the counter, a small and amused smile forming on his lips. "Now, now, Dei, don't be so mean. This is going to be fun."

"Vanilla lotion, eh? Weird." Miya frowned. But... Wasn't Itachi in that Organization, Aka... Akatsuki! Her eyes snapped open. "Kami-sama..." She muttered under her breath. Just _what_ had she gotten into!? She knew she wasn't that loyal to Konoha, but she had been with the most powerful criminals known all this time and acted like they were her equals. She could have just ran or commit seppuku, but... No, no. She had to be calm.  
She noticed the other presences when they entered the kitchen for the first- well, for her it was the second time. "Hm... What are you doing?"

Yuka snickered out of amusement. "You didn't realize until now?" Yuka looked around in the kitchen, seeing Sasori. Great. She really didn't want to see him now. She looked away, covering the side of her face, feeling her cheeks get red.

Deidara grunted. "I was just leaving."

Tobi kept Deidara beside him. "We're baking cookies, Miya-chan!"

Miya didn't answer Yuka's question; she figured it was obvious enough. She smiled at the three men, placing her hands on her hips. "Really? That sounds fun." She looked over at Deidara, who seemed to be the most displeased with the situation. "Bake me one?" She asked; no, she wasn't joking.

Sasori raised an eyebrow at Yuka. "There's no need to stand there." He told her calmly. Had she felt that bothered with Kisame's attitude?  
... Well, probably yes. She'd get used to it, though, hopefully.

Tobi squealed. "Deidara can make you a heart-shaped one!" He said, volunteering his beloved senpai.

"No, I won't." Deidara said stubbornly.

"You. Will." Tobi said, with an unnatural forcefulness. "And Tobi will make one for Miya-chan too!"

Yuka glanced over at Sasori. She didn't follow his statement. "Is there something I should be doing instead?"

"No." Sasori shook his head; he ought to have rethought his choice of words. "I simply meant that you could take a seat. Unless you're just walking by, in which case I know it would seem quite stupid."

"Aww, thank you Tobi!" Miya hugged him. He was really becoming something like a little brother to her... And it was odd to say that about a criminal. Extremely odd. She let go of him and looked at the blonde. "You're mean, you know." It came out as more of a statement, rather than an actual question.

"Oh, Deidara-san, could you bake me a cookie as well? For old time's sake? I'm dreadfully hungry."

Deidara snapped, "I get paid to be mean." He turned to Yuka with a slightly confused expression. _For old time's sake?_ He then remembered the night before. His expression changed to that of a death glare. "Hell. No."

"Now now, Deidara. is that any way to talk to people?" Sasori raised an eyebrow. He was having _fun_ watching his partner 'suffering' like this. He shook his head faking disappointment. "I thought you would have at least learned some manners with the Akatsuki."

"Oh fuck you, then." Miya said in a serious tone; _again_ with the personality thing! But well, she was hungry and tired and if she had a _problem_ then it's not like it was intentional. She sat down on a nearby chair. "I can't wait to try one of your cookies, Tobi." She said kindly.  
So, maybe it was just something of the moment. Either way, she'd apply that 'silence treatment' to the blonde until he stop acting so bitchy.

Deidara glared at Sasori. It was pissing him off that Sasori was taking _their_ side _again._ "Damn it, Danna. I don't have to have manners. If you want Yuka-san to have a cookie so bad, make it yourself. She's your wannabe girlfriend, un." Turning with a huff, he mixes the cookie dough in his bowl. At this point, he didn't _care_ who he pissed off.

Tobi grinned. "I'm going to make yours with extra-special love, Miya-chan!"

Yuka was completely shocked by Deidara's statement. In her utter astonishment, she fell off the bar stool. What a klutz.

"PMSing, much?" Miya muttered under her breath, not even bothering to do as much as _glare_ at Deidara. She stood up and walked over to Yuka, holding out her hand for her. "Oh and Tobi, I'd be careful if I were you. You never know when someone might add explosives to that cookie dough."

Sasori glared at Deidara. No, it wasn't a glare, it was a _death glare_, proof that he was trying very hard to not lash out at his partner. "_Respect_ isn't just for the average definition of a 'good guy', you little shit. I suggest you get a hold of that one concept before I turn you into a _true_ work of art. And you _know_ I would."

Deidara nodded slowly. "Yes, Danna." He turned back to his cookie dough and put balls of it on the cookie tray. He looked over at Miya and Tobi through the corner of his eyes. "I did _**not**_ put explosives in the cookie dough."

Tobi smiled. "I know you didn't, Senpai. Here's the cookie cutter." He handed Deidara a heart-shaped cookie cutter.

Yuka took Miya's hand and got to her feet. She felt like a dumb blonde. And damn it, she wasn't even blonde! The kitchen wasn't a place she needed to be right now, she decided. "I..." She couldn't find any words to say. Simply shaking her head, as said. "Thank you, Miya." She turned and walked out of the kitchen.

Miya looked down at her feet when Yuka left the kitchen; she felt as if, in a way, it was her fault for this awkward moment - she had been the one 'joking' in the first place, and she wouldn't dare blaming it on Tobi's naïve actions. With a sigh, she broke that 'silent treatment'; walking over to Deidara, she slapped him right across the face. "You're a jerk!" She snapped, walking off to look for Yuka.

Sasori sighed in irritation. "Now look at what you did. Even _I_ could take such a simple joke, brat." He said coldly, looking over at the kitchen doorway. He wondered if they'd have some sort of girl y moment and do something stupid... Hopefully not. "

Yuka turned and saw Miya following her. "You didn't have to come out here...I just...ERG, I'm so stupid right now." She shook her head. She had been acting very un-kunoichi like. "I hurt the side of my hip...I was going to find a bathroom to, um, look at it...it should only be a bruise if even that, but it's an excuse to temporarily leave..."

Tobi nudged Deidara, who was cutting the cookie into a heart shape to humor his kohai. "You're in big trouble now, Senpai. You better add extra special love to Miya's cookie so she doesn't hate you forever."

Deidara sighed. "And what is this 'extra special love'? Un."

"Sprinkles!" Tobi cheered, handing him a bottle of pink and red sprinkles.

Miya sighed once again; it was becoming a habit. "You're not stupid, Yuka-chan." She stated. "Anyway... I'm sure your hip's fine. But we don't have to go back in there.; there's more places to uhm... Explore. Yeah, that's it."

Sasori slapped his forehead: Tobi could be childish, but this...! It made him wonder what it would be like if their Leader was like this young man.  
"Yes, sugar and spice and everything nice are the keys to a kunoichi's heart..." The redhead rolled his eyes. He didn't, however, make any motion to stand up or leave. He was still having fun watching this; he should try it, some day.

"Really?!" Tobi grinned. "You might be just in luck, Senpai!"

Deidara frowned. "Whatever, Tobi, un." He put the cookies into the oven. All there was to do now was wait.

Yuka nodded. "Thanks, Miya-chan." Yuka looked around. "Let's explore then, shall we?" Yuka took a long walk down the hallway and opened a random door. "Let's see what's in here..."

"As long as it's not bloo-" Miya stopped halfway through her statement as she put a hand to her mouth, coughing. _What the... _She looked around to find rather interesting surroundings. She didn't even say anything; she just stared with a mildly disturbed look upon her face.

Sasori shook his head. Tobi was just too naïve to understand sarcasm. And if he did understand it, he did a damn good job at hiding that.  
In spite of hating waiting, the redhead decided to just sit there. He didn't have anything better to right now, anyway.

Yuka's eyes widened. She had encountered such things before. But not like this. She had to keep her composure. Handle herself like a true Kunoichi. She had to. She blinked slowly and closed the door. "..."

Tobi started singing, much to Deidara's displeasure. "_Cooking is so fun, cooking is so fun. Now it's time to take a break and see what we have done._" The timer buzzed. "_Ah! It's READY!_"

Deidara stared at Tobi. "What. The. Fuck." It was true, the cookies were done, so he took them out of the oven.

"... Never again..." Miya muttered, looking at the door; there was a slight eye twitch evident, but she didn't seem to notice it at all. She shook her head. "Let's find another room. A _safer_ one at that."

"..." Sasori stared blankly at Tobi, mentally reinforcing that previous thought: he wasn't just naïve, he was a five year-old in a grown man's body.  
For a moment he wondered what those cookies tasted like... Then again, whatever he usually ate was so tasteless - courtesy of Kakuzu being so cheap when it comes to _everything_ - that he had no idea if he could still taste at all.

Tobi squealed. "Sasori-san!" Tobi hopped over happily. "You should go get Miya-chan and Yuka-san so we can all have cookies!"

Deidara said nothing. He preoccupied himself taking the cookies off the cookie tray.

Yuka nodded. "I agree." She walked on, but was hesitant about opening any other door.

If Sasori could bring himself to show the distaste for the dark-haired man's attitude, he probably would have. But he didn't, and instead stood up, calmly leaving the room with an 'alright'.

"... Maybe we shouldn't. Deidara said a lot of these rooms were bedrooms. I don't want to be invading someone's privacy and uh... You get my point." Miya looked down at her feet for a moment, but looked up again when she heard footsteps - much like a cat would do when someone made some noise to break a comfortable silence.

Yuka nodded quickly. "Gotcha," she agreed. She turned in the direction the footsteps were coming from. Sasori. She didn't say anything, she simply watched him approach.

Tobi got out a gallon of milk. "We have to have milk with our cookies!"

"...Whatever, un."


	20. Part Vingt

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Vingt

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto Characters (c) Kishimoto 

Yokaze no Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

Kurosawa Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

* * *

"You two." Sasori said in an emotionless tone that could almost compare to Itachi's - not because he was angry, though, but it just came out that way. "Tobi asked you to come and... Eat cookies." It seemed so _wrong_ to say that, considering his status as a shinobi.  
After he was sure the message had gone through them, he turned around, heading back to where he'd come from in the first place. 

"For Tobi." Miya muttered with a shrug as she followed Sasori - but not before giving Yuka an apologetic look. Tobi was being nice to them, so she figured she wouldn't offend him; besides, it's not like she actually had to talk to mister 'I'm-pmsing-because-I-don't-like-baking', right?

Yuka followed Sasori and was glad he was walking ahead of her. Her cheeks couldn't help but redden after all the crap that had happened today. Unless he had eyes in the back of his head. Her eyes widened. Now she was just getting herself paranoid.

When Sasori and the two kunoichi arrived back in the kitchen, Deidara had glasses of milk poured and cookies sitting on little plates, and napkins folded diagonally sitting beside the plates. Why the hell he was giving into Tobi's ludicrous demands, he did not know.

"Fancy." Sasori commented before he sat down at the very end of that row of plates. He held back the urge to suggest Deidara a career as a 'housewife', both for sounding quite discriminatory and because he wanted to avoid any further arguments.

Miya _had_ noticed Yuka's expression, but didn't say anything; it was none of her business, anyway. When they got to the kitchen, she couldn't help but smile. At Tobi.  
Why? Well, from what had happened earlier, it was probably his fault Deidara had done this  
much. After all, he hadn't seemed very pleased with the idea in the first place.

Yuka took the sat towards opposite side of the row when Tobi shrieked. "Yuka-san! you can't sit there!" All Yuka could say was 'eh?' as Tobi pushed her to the spot next to Sasori. Tobi explained. "That's Miya-chan's spot! Senpai made her cookie with extra special love!"

Yuka could only blink at this, and simply ate her cookie.

Hearing 'extra special love' Deidara shoved his cookie in his mouth, to avoid answering any possible questions concerning said phrase.

Sasori just took a bite out of the cookie; he was better off not even thinking of anything. _What the..._ He inwardly frowned.  
...He could still _taste_. And these cookies were damn better than whatever he rarely ate.

Miya blinked as well, sitting slowly, as if waiting for Tobi to yell something unexpected that would make her fall off her seat. The picked up the cookie and examined it, but then turned to Tobi. "... He did _what_?"

Yuka glanced at Sasori from the corner of her eye. He seemed to be surprised about _something_. She decided it wasn't her business. It wasn't. He was her boss. Any kind of attraction she possibly had was out of line. Plus, it wasn't like he would even think of her an any way that wasn't the utmost professional. She swallowed her cookie she had been chewing on and chugged her milk.

Tobi grinned. "He put extra special love in it. See all the sprinkles? It's cookie love because you're extra special."

Deidara nearly choked on his cookie hearing this.

Sasori held back a laugh at that and his expression slowly changed to that of an amused person with a smile. A 'this is going to get interesting' smile, but an 'I'm going to kill you in your sleep' kind of smile.  
Typical Tobi; the redhead figured he would have forgotten the 'sprinkles equal extra love' thing, but apparently his attention span wasn't _that_ short. Then again, he was like a little kid and little kids remember everything except what they should.

Miya stared at Tobi, her mouth hanging open. She stared. And stared. And stared until she could blink and articulate a sentence. "I'm _what_, Tobi-kun?"

Tobi hugged Miya. "You're extra special. Right, Senpai?"

Deidara cleared his throat. "What?" He called out towards the hallway, feigning hearing someone's voice. "What's that, Zetsu? You want Tobi?" He turned to his kohai. "You heard it. Zetsu wants you."

"Zetsu-san wants me?" Tobi squealed and hurried out of the room.

Yuka shook her head slightly. Deidara's tactics for getting rid of Tobi were those of getting rid of a three-year-old.

"That was mean of you." Miya said bluntly as she watched Tobi leave. Then, she _finally_ took a bite out of the cookie she'd been holding. And it was actually... Pretty good.

"You wouldn't have said that in a while." Sasori pointed out, bringing the glass of milk to his lips. He wondered how long either of the two would be able to withstand Tobi... And everyone else, for that matter.

Deidara looked relieved. He was glad Tobi was gone. That kid was so annoying! He nodded in agreement with Sasori. "He was ten times worse while you were gone."

Yuka finished her cookie and milk and put her dishes in the sink, along with all the other dirty dishes. She stood idly in the kitchen, debating on what to do, then walked out into the hallway.

"... If you say so." Miya muttered with a shrug; maybe he just didn't have the patience to handle kids... Well, Tobi wasn't a kid, but he sure acted like one, so it would all add up to the same in the end. She ate the rest of the cookie while staring at the wall in front of her. There wasn't much to say and she wasn't so keen on speaking with her mouth full.

Sasori set the glass on the table; he figured, since last time he had to put Dei's dishes in the sink, this time he'd do that. It's not like he had to wash them and get soap in his hand mouths - and even so, he'd probably need gloves -. "This was... Pretty good, brat." He said with some hesitation; he wasn't used to complimenting people and it was happening way too often. "You should try to cook more often and spare us some awkward moments with people like, say, Zetsu."  
And with that, he walked off.

Deidara didn't say anything to Sasori. He didn't know what to say. He knew that he couldn't cook more. He'd end up getting ragged on for being gender-confused or some shit if he did. He turned to Miya. "Did you like the cookie?"

Yuka watched Sasori walk past her. She caught up with him, in step. She blocked out all her previous thoughts concerning the older man and said, "Is there anything in particular I need to be doing? Or could be doing?" _Aside from walking in on people._ She thought, but decided not to mention that.

"Hmm?" Sasori didn't quite expect anyone to talk to him; then again, he was more concerned on changing clothes - his current ones were still damp from the rain and even if he couldn't actually catch a cold or feel what the fabric was like right now, it made him uncomfortable even if just because he thought too much about it. "Not until Leader says you have to anything."

"The what? Oh yeah, the cookie." Miya shook her head as if she'd just been woken up from a daydream... Which was essentially it. But it happened to everyone once in a while, no? She wasn't an exception, especially when all the sugar was starting to affect her imagination - if that was even possible. "Yeah, yeah, I liked it. Thanks."

Deidara smiled a bit shyly. "Good, un." It was good that she liked the cookie. He never would admit it, but baking the cookies had been a bit fun, excluding the presence of Tobi.

Yuka frowned. "I see." She said coolly. She stopped walking and sat against the wall of the hallway. She was the type of person who got pissy when they were bored and had nothing to do. So she was going to sit there and pout. Not that you could tell that she was pouting, of course.

Miya looked at Deidara curiously. "Why would you care?" She inquired. Her tone made it sound like it was something unimportant. "It's not like you wanted to bake them in the first place."

"Go to the living room; if you're lucky enough, Kakuzu won't have sold all the good books." Sasori suggested, stopping to look at his subordinate. "It probably won't take long until Leader need you to start working."

Yuka tapped her fingers on the floor dully, then looked over at Sasori. "We'll just assume I know where that is." In a way, she was a bit disappointed that he didn't beckon her to follow him. _Stupid Yuka._ She cursed herself.

Deidara frowned. "Yes, but I made them, didn't I?" He couldn't find the words to express the pride secretly had from knowing that no one had died from his cooking...ye

Sasori sighed and shook his head. "Right." He turned around to face the other side of the hallway. "Just follow me and I'll take you there, then."  
There went his 'meditating time' plans... _Fuck_.

"Well yes, you did, but still... Eh, never mind." Miya shrugged. She stood up and took the plate and glass of milk and put them on the sink before she sat back down, with her elbows on the table and her hands supporting her head. "So what am I supposed to do while I wait for someone to come bitch at me to take care of a paper cut?"

Deidara looked around the kitchen as if it were to give him an answer to Miya's question. "You can go hang out with Yuka-san and do whatever you girls do when you're alone together." There really wasn't much else that could be done at the moment. For once, it was quiet and peaceful in the Akatsuki lair.

Yuka jumped to her feet and scurried behind Sasori. When they got to the living room, she found a small selection of books to read, aside from the dozens of porn magazines. She didn't bother asking whose those were. She picked up _The Catcher in the Rye_ and smiled at Sasori. "Thank you, Sasori-san."

"I'm sure it would be lovely to have a civilized conversation." Miya coughed. "Had it not been for the fact that Yuka and Sasori-sama left at the same time and I'm not so eager to deal with his deadly aura. And I sort of meant generally... You know, for the next week or so, until someone kills me in a fit of blind rage."

"Hm... No problem." Sasori looked around. Even this room was empty; had the rain affected everyone's feelings to the point they wouldn't leave their room? Eh, it didn't matter anyway. The more peaceful, the better - the more concentrated he would be.  
The redhead spotted a book on the very corner of the shelf and instantly brought it out. "Ah, so that's where I left it." He said to himself, examining the cover. It wasn't just a book on puppetry; it was where he had some of the designs he wanted to work on in the future.

Deidara snorted. "Civilized? Talking about your clothes and how fat you are when you're not fat is civilized?" Deidara really didn't have a good understanding of women; he just knew the stereotypes. "Anyway, un, if you think Danna's aura is 'deadly'...you haven't met Itachi-san or Pein-sama or Kakuzu-san or Zetsu-san, un."

Yuka sat down on the sofa with her legs underneath her. For some reason, she always found that position to be the most comfortable. She opened her book and frowned. It wasn't in Japanese! The characters for this language were very peculiar to Yuka. She had never seen anything like it. She'd heard of such things before: lands across vast oceans where they spoke different tongues and wore even odder clothes than the Sound ninja. Yuka tried to decipher characters, but it only made her eyes ache. She temporarily discarded the book, and bent her head over, her hand rubbing her eyes.

"... Zetsu-sempai scares me, thank you very much. I'd rather not meet anyone else, especially that 'Pein-sama'... Who I'm assuming is at a higher rank than you all." Miya shuddered; these people, although interesting to some extent, were frightening - hell, even Deidara scared her. A little.  
"Oh and by the way;" She gave him a fierce glare. "Don't talk about what you don't know, okay? I'm far from ever considering those shallow subjects something 'civilized', even if I am not immune to ever participating in conversations about 'girly' subjects. And I am not fat."

"Hmm? Something the matter?" Sasori looked over at Yuka while keeping a hand on the page he had been looking - and the extremely old puppet design he had found between two sheets.  
The girl looked fairly tired and he wondered where the excitement upon finding tat book had ended up; unless it was one of Pein-sama or Zetsu's books, in which case, it made some sense: if they didn't include world domination, knowledge about many countries, information on tailed beats, plants, gardening or cannibalism, they were written in different languages only either of the two in the whole group seemed to actually be skillful at. Go figure.


	21. Part Vingt et Un

Lilacs and Cyanide, Part Vingt et Un

* * *

Disclaimer: Naruto Characters (c) Kishimoto 

Yokaze no Yuka (c) Me [Takika/Manixa-chan

Kurosawa Miya (c) AromaticPain [deviantart

* * *

Deidara frowned. "Unfortunately you will _have_ to meet Pein-sama. He is our leader." He added. "And I didn't say you were fat." 

Yuka shook her head. "It's nothing, Sasori-san." She put the book back on the shelf and looked for one in a language she understood. There was no point in telling him about such trivial things like not being able to read a book. She scanned the small collection of books and pulled out another book, eying the cover oddly. "_Icha Icha Paradaisu?_" She sat back on the couch and flipped open the book.

"... I didn't say you did, I just made it clear that I'm not skinny but I'm not fat, either." Miya muttered. "Anyway, yeah, I'm going to find something useful to do with my short life span if you don't mind." She got out of her seat and slowly walked out of the kitchen.

Sasori nearly _choked_ when she read the title; and he was a _puppet_, he couldn't even do that. "That's probably Kisame's." He stated while rolling his eyes. How many times had the shark man be warned not to leave those smutty novel around? Not just because of their contents and Tobi's curiosity, but also because Konan didn't seem to appreciate who they had been written by.

Deidara followed her. "Short life span, huh? Well, if you start wandering around on your own, you'll find your life span suddenly greatly shorter." The Akatsuki Lair wasn't exactly safe for those who didn't know where they were going.

Yuka read the book, curled up in her spot on the couch. The kunoichi nearly had a nosebleed reading the smut. She couldn't divert her attention from the novel, even though she was getting very sleepy. Reading in a quiet, comfortable place did that to her.

Miya stopped, placing her hands on her hips in that way mothers do when they're scolding someone. "So what, I have to follow you or Tobi around twenty-four seven or spend my time stuck in a room owned by some crazy religious man who stabs himself with a pike through the stomach, until someone wants me to take care of a mild burn?" She asked. She knew he probably didn't mean it that way, but it made her feel like she was a caged bird; and birds are supposed to be free.

Sasori raised an eyebrow. Had Yuka not heard him, or was she just _that_ keen on reading that kind of smut? Even if it was well-written - yes, he was guilty of _reading_ a chapter or two at some point -, he wouldn't have guessed a woman would want to read it.  
Now, that was just so sexist of him, but he couldn't avoid it.  
"... I'm sure Kisame would absolutely love it if you asked him for the other volumes." He said loudly, flipping a page of his own book.

"I don't mean it like that," Deidara said. "Just be careful of where you go, un. Danna, for example, has his room rigged so if anyone but him tries to get in, they get poisoned."

Yuka didn't answer Sasori. Nor had she heard him. Moments after Sasori finished what he was saying, the kunoichi fell over onto the couch, asleep. A few strands of her hair fell into Sasori's thigh, but otherwise she was not touching him.

"... 'Kay." Miya didn't need to be reminded to be careful, but she didn't say anything; she had seen how a _little_ comment had set off a rather uncomfortable situation, so she figured a snappy comeback would do no good to either of them. "I'm going back to 'my room'." She muttered, even making that quoting sign with her hands. She had left her travel bag there and if she had nothing better to do, she could at least continue reading scrolls, like she had been only the previous day when she had been so rudely interrupted.

Sasori's eyes widened the slightest bit when Yuka fell over, not because of how she - and her hair - had ended up, but rather because it had been so sudden and unexpected: though he'd never admit it, for a split second he had thought she had fallen over dead and right now he was mentally scolding himself for not having reacted... While at the same time he was glad he hadn't or he could have scared his subordinate; it was one thing to push off a half-asleep Deidara, but pushing off a _girl_ who hadn't actually bothered him was a completely different matter.

Deidara let Miya go to her room. She wouldn't get into any trouble in there. If Hidan came in the room in a rage, all she'd have to do would be to pull out a tampon or something and he would run away. He decided he would find Danna. He hadn't really had the typical 'quality time' with him. He walked into the living room and found Yuka taking up the whole couch that Sasori wasn't sitting on. "Danna, move her or I'm sitting on her head."

Sasori looked up at his partner, surprised not to see a shorter mess of brown hair or a pile of fluff adorned with an orange mask tagging along. Of course by that he meant the girl that he - quite fortunately - wouldn't have to deal. And Tobi.  
"No." He answered quite simply, shutting the book and setting it on the couch's arm. "If you want to sit, go to your room or grab a pillow and sit on the floor."

Yuka stretched in her sleep and got into a more comfortable position. She faced the back of her couch, her legs curled and her left arm was pressed against her chest, while her right arm was tucked under her head, the top of her hand laying on Sasori's thigh where her hair was.

Deidara frowned. "You're just going to sit there and let her pretend to sleep so she can molest you?"

No, Sasori wasn't thinking very well now; it wasn't exactly the most _comfortable_ feeling in the world to have someone else's hands where they shouldn't me. He looked down at the sleeping figure and gently moved her hand away, only to look back up at Dei. "Happy now?" He asked in a flat tone. "Or are you just jealous you're not the one doing that?"  
He almost twitched at that. It was like thinking of Orochimaru come time before he left the organization... Except less creepy.

Deidara frowned. He turned and turned the TV up. Loud.

"Turn that gawddamn thing off now or I'ma gonna shove a stick up your ass," Yuka groaned irritably. How the hell could she sleep with a lot of racket?

Sasori shifted away from Yuka the slightest bit, thinking that would avoid any fault in communication - in which case _he_'d be the one suffering instead of his partner.  
... Well, he wouldn't, he was an S-ranked criminal who'd be long gone before she could make that threat real, but _even so_.  
"Just turn that off, brat. Or at least lower the volume." He muttered.

Deidara frowned. It took everything he had to not to knock the shit out of the kunoichi. He turned down the volume of the TV, _slightly_. "Why don't you take her to her room or something, Danna? Or make her take herself, un."

"Because she can be here if she wants to, just like you, Leader-sama, Tobi or anyone else." Sasori replied while rolling his eyes. He paid no attention to the television or... Anything else, for that matter. He seemed to slowly return to his not-so-unusual apathetic state. "If you're so bothered, then off my planet, brat. There's more things to do than watch television."

----

Yuka stepped outside of Pein-sama's 'office'. She had just returned from an undercover mission and had reported all the details to him. She had been serving Akatsuki for several months now. By the looks of it, she was doing a good job--she was still alive. She walked down the hallway towards her and Miya's room. The room they were now staying in was made habitable several weeks after their arrival. Yuka had hardly any time to enjoy the comforts of a room without the bloody raving Jashinist--she had been sent out on a mission, the one she had just completed. It had taken about a month and a half. She met up with Zetsu ever week or so to relay important information. Now that she was back, she had been able to give a more detailed report.

Yuka wiped her brow absentmindedly and stared at the blood that come off. She had forgotten she was bleeding. She shook her head and walked into her room. "Hey, Miya-chan!" She sat down across from her and pointed to her eyebrow. "Leader-sama said that I should have you look at this." That was completely true, too. The gash on her wasn't very deep, but it would require stitches.

Miya sighed loudly; it wasn't unusual, by now, to find her in 'her' room. Yes, she had enough liberty to walk around the hideout and the field surrounding it, or even go as far as visiting the closest town every one or twice. But it still didn't make up for the fact that only months ago she had doomed her life span to shorten a bit every day, by becoming part of the same household as a group of S-ranked criminals.  
She was a pretty quiet person, usually sitting in her corner, reading, et cetera. She only ever had the need to say more than a few words or small phrases when she had to heal one of those people.  
... In 'her' room. Because this Kakuzu person was too cheap and bought a couple of cheap cupboards and cheap supplies. He probably hoped half of the people in Akatsuki had a cheap deaths at the hand of a Konoha medic nin.

One that, over time, proved to have some sort of personality issue. It wasn't that she was bipolar or had multiple personalities, but she had odd personality changes. She'd often just smile and say it was a 'little monster biting at the back of [her head'.

The brunette hadn't expected anyone to show up now; she was actually going to take a nap - staring at the wall was making her sleep - when her eyes snapped open. "N-nani? Yuka-san, you're finally back?" She blinked; was this some sort of weird dream sequence?  
Apparently not.  
She smiled, focusing on her wounded eyebrow. "You can't imagine how much I missed something that wasn't a paper cut or a pike through the stomach..." Miya shook her head and stood up for a moment, heading to one of those 'cheap cupboards' and took out a few things, then she sat back down next to Yuka. "Alright then, how've you been?" She asked.  
The Konoha girl didn't need much concentration to take care of a wound; she had started by 'numbing' the spot slightly after cleaning most of the blood away and she was going to dew a few stitches. It wouldn't hurt.

Yuka grinned. "Same old. I enjoyed that village I was at...they had a very big brewery. Very nice." She couldn't bring herself to mention anything about her mission. She had just had a seemingly three-hour long meeting concerning it. "I figured I'd celebrate for a successful mission...Had some sake at a bar...and got in a fight. Funny how it didn't stop bleeding, huh?" It was odd that her wound bled so much. Yuka didn't get injured too often, so it just might have been that she wasn't used to bleeding.

Tobi looked down at his finger and sniffled. He had another paper cut. He ran into Miya's room to get her to fix it but stopped in the doorway when he say Yuka. "Yuka-san is back?" He grinned happily until he saw blood. "Oh no!" He ran out of the room to Sasori and Deidara's room. "Sasori-san! Yuka-san is back! She's bleeding! I think she's going to die!"

Deidara grunted loudly at Tobi's loud intrusion. The blond had been enjoying a nice cat nap. "Damn it, Tobi, do you know how to be quiet, un?"

"Heh, sounds pretty fun... Or would sound if it wasn't for the whole 'more than just fun' factor." Miya frowned in concentration; she was always afraid her hand might slip and she might stick a needle in someone's eye. "And yeah, I suppose it's a bit odd that it didn't stop bleeding, but it's not a first." She looked to her side for a moment like someone had just told her something, then shrugged and went back to finish sewing the cut. She was about to finish it up when someone came in. Tobi, to be exact, and he seemed to have the wrong idea about Yuka's wound.  
"No, wait!" But he was already out of the room. She sighed. "He's always like this."

Sasori dropped the glass eye he was about to place on a small puppet as soon as Tobi - rather rudely - came into the room and announced Yuka's return... And current state?  
That's what had shocked the puppet master enough for him to let that precious blue orb shatter on the floor. However, he paid no attention to that.  
He stood up and headed over to the doorway, only stopping to glance back at his partner. "Of course he doesn't. Apparently you don't understand an imbeciles' mentality. And I thought you would have learned something with yourself." She shook his head and walked out the door. "Lead the way, Tobi."

Yuka smiled despite herself. "I look that bad then?" Tobi over exaggerating was one thing...but his reaction seemed greater than that.

Tobi beckoned Sasori to follow him and raced to Miya's room. "See, see?"

Deidara got up. Tobi has ruined his sleep, there was no way he'd be able to get back to sleeping until later that night. He followed Tobi with Sasori and walked into Miya's room and got a good look at Yuka. "Idiot, she's not dying, un."

"No, of course not." Miya shook her head; she had gotten used to Tobi's personality only enough to not give him a 'what the hell' kind of look whenever he overreacted to a certain situation. She looked over as Tobi came back with two of the three resident artists. "No shit, you actually believed that?" The brunette asked upon hearing the blonde's rather obvious statement. She turned her attention back to finishing the process of sewing the cut. "Okay, all done."

"... I see a cut on her forehead." Sasori said bluntly as he and the other two reached the doorway. He sighed, shaking his head like a disappointed parent. "Do you need to be constantly reminded of the difference between a small wound and a lethal one? Or should I exemplify it for you?" He glared up at the masked man. "Just run off after those butterflies Zetsu is going to set free. And see if you break your neck while you're at it."

Tobi's mouth gaped. "But it was on her head!" He looked at his feet while Sasori chastised him rather cruelly. He sniffled loudly. "I'm sorry, Sasori-san!" Hearing the word 'butterfly' he smiled broadly. "Butterflies?" He skipped out of the room to find Zetsu.

Deidara shook his head. Tobi could be such an idiot. No, it wasn't could be. It was that he _was_.

Yuka touched her eyebrow, feeling her stitches. "Thank you, Miya-chan!" She frowned slightly. "It won't scar, will it?" Yuka really didn't mind scars, but she didn't particularly want one on her face.


End file.
